Sealed Air Sued By EEOC for Sex-Based Pay and National Origin Discrimination

Federal Agency Charges Sealed Air Corp., d/b/a Kevothermal LLC, Paid Female Production Supervisor Less Than Male, Imposed Language Restriction

Albuquerque, NM. -Sealed Air Corporation, a protective packaging business, violated federal law by paying a female production supervisor lower wages than its male production supervisor and by discriminating against her because of her national origin, Hispanic, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

Read more here.

EEOC Issues New Resource Documents for White House United State of Women Summit

Documents Address Equal Pay and Pregnancy Discrimination

WASHINGTON, DC-Today, leaders from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) will participate in the White House United State of Women Summit. The Summit gathers experts, advocates, and grassroots and business leaders who work in both domestic and international arenas to highlight key issues affecting women and girls and best practices to carry on into the future. The Summit's plenary and breakout sessions will address topics including economic empowerment, health and wellness, educational opportunity, violence against women, entrepreneurship and innovation, and leadership and civic engagement. The Summit will be livestreamed at www.theunitedstateofwomen.org.

Read more here.

National Equal Pay Day 2016

Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, Lexology

Today marks the twentieth anniversary of “Equal Pay Day,” which the National Committee on Pay Equity launched as a public awareness event in 1996 to symbolize how far into the year women must work to earn what men earned in the previous year. In more than 50 years since enactment of the federal Equal Pay Act (“EPA”) and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”), women have made significant.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• National Equal Pay Day 2016 (Jackson Lewis PC)
• Equal Pay Day (Think Progress)
• It’s not “choices,” it’s pure sexism: Women get paid less for one reason — they’re discriminated against (Salon)
• Here's What it Takes to Sue For Gender Pay Discrimination—and Win (Fortune)
• On Equal Pay Day, CAP Outlines Next Steps for Progress on Equal Pay (Center for American Progress)
• The Simple Truth about the Gender Pay Gap (AAUW)
• Equal Pay Day: Pay Gap Wider for Black, Latina, American Indian Women (DiversityInc)
• Equal Pay and the Wage Gap (National Women's Law Center)
• Video: It's Time for #EqualPayNow (U.S. Department of Labor)
• On Equal Pay Day, key facts about the gender pay gap (Pew Research Center)
• Madam C.E.O., Get Me a Coffee (The New York Times)

Equal Pay Act in Action: Court Approves $8.2M Settlement

Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP, Lexology

As both states and the federal government amp up their efforts to enforce the Equal Pay Act (EPA)—with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) set to collect pay data from employers and states passing their own versions of the statute—a federal court judge in California granted final approval to an $8.2 million deal for a class of about 1,500 female pharmaceutical reps in an EPA lawsuit. The case involved allegations that although half of the company's sales representatives were female, just one-third of the district managers were female and the upper-level management positions were almost entirely filled by men. The complaint referenced a "high number" of harassment and discrimination complaints against the employer, adding that the mostly male management made final pay decisions that favored men and disfavored women in violation of the EPA. After the court conditionally certified a collective action for the female reps, the employer agreed to pay $4.6 million to the women and retain a consultant to review its employment policies and practices, including criteria in promotions and career development. The settlement fund will be paid proportionately between the class members as back pay, based upon the number of workweeks during the damages period. The employer also agreed to cover the costs of settlement administration, incentive awards for class representatives (ranging from $1,000 to $25,000), and about $3 million in attorneys' fees and costs.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• Latest California Equal Pay Legislation Targets Race and Ethnicity (Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP)

Three States Seek to Bolster Fair Pay Laws

Epstein Becker Green, Lexology

Following on the tails of recent updates in New York and California’s equal pay laws, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and California all have bills pending in their state legislatures that would seek to eliminate pay differentials on the basis of sex and other protected categories.

Read the story here.

Claims brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Equal Pay Act

Sirote & Permutt PC, Lexology

In this week's Alabama Law Weekly Update, we report on a case from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama discussing the accommodations requirement under the Americans with Disabilities Act and a case from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama examining a claim brought under the Equal Pay Act.

Read the story here.

U.S. women paid less in all industries, every level: report

By Patricia Reaney, Reuters

Women in the United States are paid less for equal work than men in all industries and a new report released on Thursday showed the widest discrepancy in wages is between married men and women with children.

Read the story here.

Related content:

• New Research Proves the Hidden Inequality within the Gender Wage Gap (The Financial Times)
• Gender Pay Gap Will Be Erased, But It Will Take 118 Years: Report (NBC News)
• A CEO’s guide to gender equality (McKinsey&Company)
• Report: Gender Wage Gap Shrinks Because Men Earn Less (The American Prospect)
• The Argument for a 70% Pay Raise for Women (Wall Street Journal)
• 5 Common Behaviors That Hinder Women's Careers (Business News Daily)
• Lean In to Be Stretched Thin? Research explores why some women turn down promotions (Scientific American)
• Do You Realize How Few Women CEOs Exist? These Executives Don't. (The Huffington Post)

OCI Petroleum/Santmyer Oil Company, Inc. Sued For Sex-Based Pay Discrimination

Oil Company Paid Female Employee Less Than Male Predecessor, Federal Agency Charges

CLEVELAND - SOCI Petroleum/Santmyer Oil Company, Inc., (SOCI), a leading oil company, violated federal equal pay laws by paying a female employee less than a male predecessor for performing substantially equal work, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed on September 30, 2015.

Read the press release here.

EEOC Sues Prince George’s County for Pay Discrimination

County Paid Female Engineer Less Than Her Male Colleagues, Federal Agency Charges

BALTIMORE - Prince George's County, Md., violated federal law when it repeatedly paid a female engineer less than her male coworkers because of her gender, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it announced today.

Read the press release here.

US Labor Department and National Equal Pay Task Force launch equal pay application development challenge

OFCCP News Release
OPA News Release: [01/31/2012]
Contact Name: Dave Roberts or Laura McGinnis
Phone Number: (202) 693-5945 or x4653
Release Number: 12-0146-NAT

Contest will engage developers to address wage gap through innovative use of data

WASHINGTON — Seeking novel ways to eliminate the gender gap in pay, the U.S. Department of Labor and its federal agency partners on the National Equal Pay Task Force today announced a contest for creating software applications that use the department's data to promote equal pay for men and women. Women are still paid less on average than their male counterparts for doing comparable jobs, and the discrepancy is even greater for minority women. Over the course of a lifetime, this "pay gap" results in lost wages, reduced pensions and diminished Social Security benefits.

"Women make up nearly half of the U.S. labor force and play a vital role in the nation's economy," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "While progress has been made in recent decades, the pay gap continues to disadvantage many women, with consequences not only for them, but for their families and the economy as a whole."

The Equal Pay App Challenge calls on developers to use publicly available data and resources to create innovative, easy-to-use apps that educate users about the pay gap and provide tools to combat it. The apps should improve the accessibility of pay data broken down by gender, race and ethnicity, and provide coaching on early career pay, pay negotiation or career mentorship. More information, including a complete list of the contest's rules and requirements, is available at http://www.challenge.gov/labor.

"Today's employers and employees are more resourceful and technologically savvy than ever before, but too many remain unaware of how the pay gap affects them," said White House Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra. "By encouraging developers to help us solve this problem, we're leveraging the unique ability of the federal government to provide mountains of valuable data as well as the innovation power of the private sector."

Applications that best satisfy the criteria for the challenge will be eligible to receive one of eight prizes, including scholarships to attend an eight-week immersive program on digital product innovation and entrepreneurship hosted by General Assembly, a campus for technology, design and entrepreneurship. The challenge will be open for submissions from Jan. 31 until March 31. Judges will announce the winners in connection with Equal Pay Day in April at http://www.challenge.gov.

To help facilitate this and similar challenges, the Labor Department last year launched http://developer.dol.gov, a website that helps software developers incorporate department data into online and mobile applications through published application program interfaces and software development kits. The website and contests are part of the Department of Labor's ongoing efforts to increase transparency, participation and collaboration through the administration's Open Government Initiative. Visit http://www.dol.gov/open/ for more information.

The National Equal Pay Task Force was created in January 2010 in response to President Obama's pledge to crack down on violations of equal pay laws. In addition to the Labor Department, members include the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Department of Justice and the Office of Personnel Management.
Read the Secretary's remarks

http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/opa/OPA20120146.htm

EEOC, OPM Pledge to Ensure "Rigorous Enforcement" of Equal Pay Laws for Federal Employees

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
PRESS RELEASE
8-16-11

Agencies Issue Joint Letter on Equal Pay in the Federal Government

WASHINGTON -- The U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) pledged to ensure "rigorous enforcement" of equal pay laws for federal employees, releasing a joint letter today. The letter will be sent to all civilian federal employees.
EEOC Chair Jacqueline A. Berrien released the letter at the EEOC's EXamining Conflicts in Employment Law (EXCEL) conference in Baltimore, the EEOC's premiere training event for federal sector equal employment. Chair Berrien said: "We cannot achieve our national commitment to equal employment opportunity until women are included as equal partners in every workplace, including the federal government. The federal government should be a model employer in every regard—including equal pay."
"Equal pay for equal work is the law, it's right, and its time has come. OPM and the EEOC are working together to ensure that federal equal pay laws are vigorously enforced in the federal workplace," said OPM Director John Berry. "Ensuring equal pay for equal work without regard to gender, or any other prohibited basis helps us recruit and retain the most talented workforce to serve the American people. While this wage gap is smaller in the federal government than in other sectors, much work remains to be done to ensure that the federal government is a model employer."
Both agencies are members of the White House's National Equal Pay Enforcement Task Force—which charged them with "providing a road map for federal agencies to increase compliance with federal compensation discrimination laws." More information about the Task Force and its recommendations can be found on the White House's website. On the Task Force, the EEOC is also focusing on private sector enforcement.
According to a 2009 report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the gender wage gap for federal employees declined from 28 cents on the dollar in 1987 to 11 cents in 2007. Of that 11 cents gap, seven cents could not be explained by differences in education, years of service, or other non-discriminatory factors.
While still significantly less than the current 33 cent wage gap in the private sector, and far less than the overall gap of 41 cents in 1963, the year the Equal Pay Act took effect, "clearly much work remains to be done in order to close the wage gap," the letter noted. Representatives from both agencies are working with the GAO to identify further causes of the wage gap and ways to combat it.
The letter points out that sex-based compensation discrimination is illegal under both the Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, both of which apply to federal sector as well as other public and private sector employers. In addition to gender, compensation discrimination is also prohibited on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, disability and genetic information or family medical history.
"We take our obligation to ensure that the federal government is a model employer very seriously, and are working to ensure that all federal employees have the opportunity to realize the promise of equal pay for equal work," the letter concluded.
The EEOC enforces the nation's laws against employment discrimination. More information is available on the EEOC's website: www.eeoc.gov. Additional information on the federal sector EEO process can be found at www.eeoc.gov/federal/.

http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/8-16-11.cfm

OFCCP Proposes Groundbreaking Data Tool to Curb Pay Discrimination

U.S. Department of Labor
For Immediate Release

Office of Public Affairs
August 2, 2011

Washington , D.C.
Release Number: 11-1208-NAT

Contact: Jason Surbey
-- or --
Laura K. McGinnis

Phone:(202) 693- 4668
202) 6934653



US Labor Department considers development

of data tool to combat pay discrimination

Public invited to comment during early stage of development



WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs is considering the development of a new data tool to collect information on salaries, wages and other benefits paid to employees of federal contractors and subcontractors. The tool would improve OFCCP’s ability to gather data that could be analyzed for indicators of discrimination, such as disparities faced by female and minority workers. To provide an opportunity for the public to submit feedback, the department published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking in the Aug. 10 edition of the Federal Register.



OFCCP enforces Executive Order 11246, which prohibits companies that do business with the federal government from discriminating in employment practices – including compensation – on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin or religion. Last year, the agency announced plans to create a compensation data tool in the department’s fall 2010 regulatory agenda. In addition to providing OFCCP investigators with insight into potential pay discrimination warranting further review, the proposed tool would provide a self-assessment element to help employers evaluate the effects of their compensation practices.



“Today, almost 50 years after the Equal Pay Act became law, the wage gap has narrowed, but not nearly enough,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “The president and I are committed to ending pay discrimination once and for all.”



The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that in 2010 women were paid an average of 77 cents for every dollar paid to men. In addition to the gender gap, research has shown that race- and ethnicity-based pay gaps put workers of color, including men, at a disadvantage. Eliminating compensation-based discrimination is a top priority for OFCCP.



“Pay discrimination continues to plague women and people of color in the workforce,” said OFCCP Director Patricia A. Shiu, a member of the president’s National Equal Pay Enforcement Task Force. “This proposal is about gathering better data, which will allow us to focus our enforcement resources where they are most needed. We can’t truly solve this problem until we can see it, measure it and put dollar figures on it.”



The notice poses 15 questions for public response on the types of data that should be requested, the scope of information OFCCP should seek, how the data should be collected, how the data should be used, what the tool should look like, which contractors should be required to submit compensation data and how the tool might create potential burdens for small businesses. The proposal will be open to public response for 60 days, and the deadline for receiving comments is Oct. 11. To read the proposal or submit a comment, visit the federal e-rulemaking portal at http://www.regulations.gov.



In addition to Executive Order 11246, OFCCP’s legal authority exists under Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974. As amended, these three laws hold those who do business with the federal government, both contractors and subcontractors, to the fair and reasonable standard that they not discriminate in employment on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, national origin, disability or status as a protected veteran. For general information, call OFCCP’s toll-free helpline at 800-397-6251. Additional information is also available at http://www.dol.gov/ofccp.

To view the ANPRM, go to: http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=OFCCP-2011-0005-0001

# # #

http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/ofccp/OFCCP20111208.htm

Hyundai Ideal Electric Company to Pay $188,000 to Settle EEOC Sex Bias and Retaliation Suit

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
PRESS RELEASE
5-12-11

Female Drafter Paid Less Than Male, Then Fired for Complaining, Federal Agency Charged
CLEVELAND — Hyundai Ideal Electric Company (HIEC), located in Mansfield, Ohio, will pay $188,000 to settle a sex discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.
In its lawsuit, the EEOC charged that Tabatha Wagner, an experienced female drafter, was hired for a job preparing drawings and sketches for batteries and engines, but at a lower salary than that of a similarly situated male who was hired only months later. Upon learning of the disparity in wages, Ms. Wagner complained to HIEC’s then human resources manager, and was subsequently fired as retaliation, the EEOC said.
Wage discrimination and retaliation for complaining about it violate the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC filed suit, No. 1:10-cv-1882, in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement.
In addition to the monetary relief, the two-year consent decree settling the suit provides for training for all human resources personnel and employees at its Mansfield, Ohio, facility and posting an anti-discrimination notice to all employees. The training will focus on complying with federal anti-discrimination laws, including but not limited to Title VII and the EPA, and preventing discrimination in pay and terms and conditions of employment as well as retaliation.
“The EEOC will not tolerate discriminatory pay practices,” said Debra Lawrence, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Philadelphia District. “To help build public awareness of this continuing problem, EEOC offices are holding Fair Pay Day events throughout the country.”
According to its web site (www.hyundaiideal.com), Hyundai Ideal Electric Co. is the market leader in medium power generators for gas, steam and hydro turbines, and diesel engines. The Mansfield facility is the company’s home office.
The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the EEOC is available on its web site at www.eeoc.gov.

http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/5-12-11.cfm

Women's Employment During the Recovery

The U.S. Department of Labor recently released a report on women's employment during the recovery. The following constitute excerpts from the summary. You may download the actual report here: http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/FemaleLaborForce/FemaleLaborForce.pdf

and hear the Teleconference audio version at http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/femalelaborforce/

DOL report summary:

In 2010, women represented 46.7 percent of the United States labor force, a slightly larger share than at the start of the recession in 2007. Overall 71.9 million women were employed or looking for work, representing 58.6 percent of all women aged 16 and over.
As the overall workforce has become more diverse, so have working women. Among women in the labor force, 13.1 percent are black, 4.7 percent are Asian and 12.8 percent are of Hispanic ethnicity. Along all racial groups, men are more likely to be employed than are women, however black women are almost as likely as black men to be employed — a fact that reflects the lower likelihood of black men working compared to other men. The gender gap is widest among Hispanics — as Hispanic men are more likely than other men to be employed, while Hispanic women are less likely than other women to be employed.
Women are nearly twice as likely as men to work part time. In 2010, 26.6 percent of women worked part time compared to just 13.4 percent of men. More women are currently working part-time than were doing so prior to the recession, reflecting the increase in women working part-time because they can't find full-time work. One in five women working part-time are doing so because they can't find full-time work. Prior to the recession, less than one in ten women working part-time were doing so because they couldn't find full-time work.
Women are nearly 50 percent more likely to work in the public sector than are men with 18.2 percent of employed women working in public sector jobs. Despite this high concentration in a heavily unionized sector — 36.2 percent of those working in the public sector are members of unions compared to 6.9 percent of those in the private sector — women are less likely to belong to a union than are men. In 2010, 11.1 percent of women were union members, compared to 12.6 percent of men.1
Women are less likely to be self-employed, only 5.5 percent, compared to 8.3 percent of men.2 However, women-owned businesses are growing rapidly. According to the most recent Census Bureau Survey of Business Owners (2007), the number of women-owned businesses grew by 20.1 percent between 2002 and 2007, compared to 5.5 percent for men-owned firms. In 2007, the Census counted 7.8 million women-owned business, representing 28.7 percent of all nonfarm businesses in the US.
Women surpass men in educational attainment. Among the employed ages 25 and over, 37.1 percent of women have at least a bachelor's degree compared to 34.9 percent of men. Because women are less likely than men to be in the workforce, female college graduates are still outnumbered by male college graduates in the labor force. However, women with a bachelor's degree outnumber men by 1.6 million in the population as a whole and women are a growing share of college graduates. As such, women college graduates are likely to outnumber male college graduates in the labor force in the near future.
Half of all women working as full-time wage and salary workers earned $669 or more per week in 2010. This median weekly wage was 81.2 percent of that earned by men. Asian women earned the most among women in 2010 — with half of all Asian women earning $778 or more. Hispanic women earned the least, with half of all Hispanic women earning $508 or more per week (and thus half earning less).
The unemployment rate averaged 8.6 percent among women in 2010. Data for March 2011 shows that the economic situation is improving for women, who have seen their unemployment rate decline to 8.3 percent. However, while the private sector has added 1.7 million jobs over the past 12 months, the public sector has lost nearly 400,000. Since women are disproportionately likely to work in the public sector, their unemployment decline has been smaller than that experienced by men. The unemployment rate for men averaged 10.5 percent in 2010 and has declined to 9.3 percent in March 2011. However women continue to have a lower unemployment rate than men, are less likely to be long-term unemployed, and have a median duration of unemployment that was 1.9 weeks shorter than men's in 2010.

Full Summary including charts: http://www.dol.gov/_sec/media/reports/femalelaborforce/

CIGNA Lawsuit Claims Gender Bias

Workforce Management
March 3, 2011

The lawsuit seeks class-action status, alleging that there is a pattern of gender discrimination at CIGNA Healthcare. The lawsuit seeks unspecified compensation and punitive damages and a restructuring of CIGNA Healthcare’s workforce “so that females are promoted into higher and better-paying classifications."

A CIGNA Healthcare Inc. manager filed a gender bias lawsuit March 3 that seeks class-action status against the health care provider, alleging the CIGNA Corp. unit gives preferential treatment to men and discriminates against its female employees.

According to Bretta Karp v. CIGNA Healthcare Inc., which was filed in federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts, the Boston-based provider contracting manager, who has worked at the unit since 1997, said she was told she was denied a promotion last year because she “came across as too aggressive” in interviews.
Instead, the job was given to a less-experienced male employee, Bill O’Donnell, who subsequently informed Karp that her largest market, Vermont, was being given to a younger, less-qualified male employee.

Full Story: http://www.workforce.com/section/news/article/cigna-lawsuit-claims-gender-bias.php

Toshiba faces $100 million gender bias lawsuit

Reuters

By Jonathan Stempel
NEW YORK Mon Jan 31, 2011 3:54pm EST

(Reuters) - A senior human resources manager at Toshiba Corp has filed a $100 million lawsuit accusing a U.S. unit of the Japanese technology company of gender bias against women in pay and promotions.
The plaintiff, Elaine Cyphers, contends Toshiba America Inc pays women lower salaries and bonuses than men who perform similar work. She also alleges the company steers women into lower-grade positions and favors men in promotions.
Cyphers said this results in an "astounding lack of women in leadership positions," despite Toshiba's creation six years ago of a "Gender Equality Office." The complaint said only 3.4 percent of Toshiba's 6,273 managers worldwide are women.
"The numbers are atrocious," said David Sanford, a partner at Sanford Wittels & Heisler LLP who represents Cyphers, in an interview. "We believe the class claims are significant, and will be substantiated in the litigation."

Full Story: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/01/31/idINIndia-54543920110131

Seton Hall Professors Can Pursue Wage-Bias Suit, N.J. Supreme Court Rules

The Chronicle of Higher Education
November 24, 2010, 1:19 am

A lawsuit filed by three female professors who accuse Seton Hall University of pay discrimination can proceed, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday, overturning lower-court decisions to dismiss the women’s claims. The lower courts had accepted the university’s argument that the suit was filed too late, based on a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court opinion that held that such complaints had to be filed within 180 days of when a discriminatory pay decision was originally made.

Full Story: http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/seton-hall-professors-can-pursue-wage-bias-suit-n-j-supreme-court-rules/28634?sid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en

Hyundai Ideal Electric Company Sued for Unequal Pay and Retaliation

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
PRESS RELEASE
8-25-10


Female Employee Paid Less Than Male, Terminated After She Complained, Federal Agency Charged
CLEVELAND — Hyundai Ideal Electric Company located in Mansfield, Ohio, violated federal laws by paying a female employee less than a male employee for performing equal work and then firing her after she complained about the disparity, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.
According to the EEOC’s suit filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division (Case: 1:10-cv-01882), Tabatha Wagner, an experienced female drafter, began her employment with the company in August 1, 2007, in the position of Design Drafter and was paid a salary less than that of a similarly situated male who was hired only months later. The lawsuit states that Wagner learned of the disparity and complained to Jon Shearer, the company’s Human Resources Manger on November 11, 2008. He subsequently terminated her employment on the next day, November 12, 2008.
Such alleged unequal pay, wage discrimination and retaliation violate the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC filed its lawsuit after first attempting to reach a voluntary settlement. The EEOC seeks monetary relief, an order requiring the company to implement new policies and practices to prevent discrimination, training on anti-discrimination laws, posting of notices at the worksite, and other injunctive relief.
Debra Lawrence, Regional Attorney for the Philadelphia District stated, “This case is an example that the wage gap is alive and well in America, with the typical full-time female worker making 77 cents for every dollar earned by her male counterpart. Employers should take note that the EEOC will not tolerate discriminatory pay practices.”
According to its web site (www.hyundaiideal.com), Hyundai Ideal Electric Co. is the market leader in medium power generators for gas, steam and hydro turbines, and diesel engines. The Mansfield facility is the company’s home office.
Over the last three fiscal years, the EEOC has seen a 30% increase in charges of wage discrimination based on sex. Through the administrative enforcement process alone, the EEOC obtained about $19 million in relief for victims of wage discrimination in FY 2009. The Commission is currently litigating 14 cases that include allegations of sex-based wage discrimination.
The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the EEOC is available on its web site at www.eeoc.gov.

http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/8-25-10a.cfm

Three in Five Americans Say U.S. Has Long Way to Go to Reach Gender Equality

Harris Interactive
Seven in ten Americans say women often do not receive the same pay as men for doing exactly the same job

New York, N.Y. - August 16, 2010 - In 1920, 144 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, women in the United States achieved the right to vote. Ninety years later gender equality is still discussed and debated. When it comes to whether things are fine between men and women, the nation is split - just over half of Americans (52%) disagree that things are fine between the genders while 43% say things are fine. But men and women have a different take on the situation with over half of men (55%) believing things are fine compared to just one-third (32%) of women who say the same.
Even more Americans (63%) agree that the U.S. still has a long way to go to reach complete gender quality. While three-quarters of women (74%) agree with this, so do just over half of men (52%).
These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 2,227 adults surveyed online between June 14 and 21, 2010 by Harris Interactive.
Whether the issue of gender equality should be addressed is another question in these times with so many other pressing issues. Three-quarters of U.S. adults (74%) agree that they do not think gender equality is perfect, but there are more pressing issues to fix first. And men and women are in agreement on this (74% of men agree as do 75% of women).
Women and Work
One of the discrepancies the Equal Rights Amendment was hoping to correct was inequality in the workplace among men and women. But seven in ten Americans (69%) say that women often do not receive the same pay as men for doing exactly the same job. Three in five U.S. adults (62%) agree that women are often discriminated against in being promoted for supervisory and executive jobs. Women are much more likely than men to agree with this but almost half of men also agree with both sentiments. Four in five women (80%) agree that women often do not receive the same pay for the same job compared to 58% of men, and 75% of women agree women are discriminated against in their promotions compared to 48% of men.
Half of Americans (50%) say women often receive lower pensions or pay more on annuities than men doing the same work while 23% disagree with this and 27% are not at all sure. And it's not just with pay that there are issues. More Americans believe women often have much more trouble than men in getting credit, bank loans and mortgages (42% agree with this while 36% disagree) and that women are often discriminated in the insurance rates they pay (38% agree; 33% disagree).
But it isn't all bad. Over half of Americans (52%) say most employers are willing make the conditions of work flexible enough to help women with families who want to go to work. Again, there is a gender difference here as three in five men (60%) agree with this compared to less than half of women (46%).
So What?
In ninety years many things have changed for women in this country. And some may argue things are better, but there is still the undercurrent that there are issues, especially when it comes to pay and employment, where things have not yet approached an equal footing with men. Women are sitting in more boardrooms and at the helms of more companies today, but there is a sense they are not yet getting paid the same as men in those positions. There is also a sense that something else may have been lost. Four in five Americans (81%) and four in five men and women (81% for both) say women today are treated with less chivalry than in the past. Can women have both equal pay and chivalry? Or can it be only or the other?

Full News Release including charts: http://www.harrisinteractive.com/NewsRoom/HarrisPolls/tabid/447/mid/1508/articleId/452/ctl/ReadCustom%20Default/Default.aspx

Equal pay is the law. Can the DOL make It reality?

Lexology.com
Strasburger & Price LLP
Jerae Carlson USA July 27 2010

Last week, Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis announced initiatives to be undertaken by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, the Department of Justice and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to strategically enforce pay discrimination laws, as well as to increase workplace flexibility to improve work/life balance. The fact that pay disparity between men and women still exists appears to be no secret. Secretary Solis acknowledged as much, stating "More money in a woman's paycheck means a working family not having to choose between paying the mortgage, buying groceries, or buying necessary school supplies." http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/wb/wb20101013.htm. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has determined that “[i]n 2009, women who were full-time wage and salary workers had median weekly earnings of $657, or about 80 percent of the $819 median for their male counterparts.” See Highlights of Women’s Earnings in 2009, Report 1025 (June 2010), http://www.bls.gov/cps/cpswom2009.pdf. This report cautions, however, that it does not account for many factors which might explain such disparity.
Nonetheless, the DOL is sufficiently concerned with the gender pay gap. Under the enforcement initiative, approximately 200 more enforcement employees will be hired, the OFCCP will publish an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to get input on how to improve the Equal Opportunity survey, and the DOL’s Women's Bureau will provide public education materials, including an Equal Pay Checklist and an improved Equal Pay Employer Self-Audit.

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