A Maryland Department of Health residential psychiatric care center violated federal law by paying its sole male Therapeutic Recreator more than all four female Therapeutic Recreators at the same facility, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit.
According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, the care center hired the male to a subordinate position and promoted him noncompetitively three times in a 13-month period, each time paying him more than the females, who at one point were his supervisors. All four females have had more tenure in their position than the male, and two have had longer state government tenure.
Such alleged conduct violates the federal Equal Pay Act of 1963. The EEOC filed suit after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The EEOC is seeking back pay, liquidated damages, and appropriate injunctive relief to prevent similar discriminatory practices in the future.
“The EEOC is fully and absolutely committed to ensuring that gender is not factored into compensation and that employees must receive equal pay for equal work,” said EEOC Baltimore Field Director Rosemarie Rhodes.
EEOC Regional Attorney Debra M. Lawrence added, “That the females performed the same duties as the male hire, had more years of experience, but were paid thousands less, is both unfair and illegal — and that’s why we filed this lawsuit.”
Ensuring equal pay protections for all workers is one of six national priorities identified by the EEOC’s Strategic Enforcement Plan. More information about pay discrimination can be found at https://www.eeoc.gov/equal-paycompensation-discrimination.
Issue:
The Equal Pay Act (EPA) requires that men and women in the same workplace be given equal pay for equal work. The jobs need not be identical, but they must be substantially equal. Job content (not job titles) determines whether jobs are substantially equal. Specifically, the EPA provides that employers may not pay unequal wages to men and women who perform jobs that require substantially equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and that are performed under similar working conditions within the same establishment. All forms of pay are covered by this law, including salary, overtime pay, bonuses, stock options, profit sharing and bonus plans, life insurance, vacation and holiday pay, cleaning or gasoline allowances, hotel accommodations, reimbursement for travel expenses, and benefits. Pay differentials are permitted when they are based on seniority, merit, quantity or quality of production, or a factor other than sex. These are known as “affirmative defenses” and it is the employer’s burden to prove that they apply. In correcting a pay differential, no employee’s pay may be reduced. Instead, the pay of the lower paid employee(s) must be increased.
Discussion Points:
- Review policies and procedures for prevention of any type of discrimination, including in hiring practices, wage, or benefit assignment.
- Train staff about their right to be free from discrimination in the workplace. Teach staff to report any concerns of discrimination to their immediate supervisor or through the facility’s hotline.
- Audit wages of all levels of workers to ensure there is no evidence of gender-based compensation discrimination or violations related to other protected categories, e.g., race, ethnicity, religion, disability, etc. Periodically audit by anonymously polling staff to determine if they may be experiencing discrimination. Ask if they feel free to report such instances without fear of retaliation or retribution.
