The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Gerald S. Kiel
Friday, April 28, 2000 (410) 962-4207
Debra Lawrence
(410) 962-4349
TTY: (410) 962-6065
EEOC SETTLES SUIT AGAINST PUBLIC ACCESS TV CORP. FOR PAY
DISCRIMINATION AND RETALIATION
BALTIMORE - The U.S. Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced a
$45,000 settlement of a lawsuit against the Baltimore Cable
Access Corporation (BCAC), an operator of public access
cable television, for firing a female manager after she
complained about sex-based wage discrimination.
A Consent Decree between the EEOC and BCAC, which resolved
the suit, was approved on April 25 by U.S. District Court
Judge Catherine C. Blake of the District of Maryland. The
suit charged BCAC with violating the Equal Pay Act of 1963
by terminating its first executive director, Karen E.
Simmons-Beathea, in retaliation for her complaints that she
was paid significantly less than her male counterparts in
the industry and then compensating her male successor at a
far higher salary for performing the same job.
"While most employers understand that women are entitled to
equal pay for equal work, some bad actors continue to
shortchange working women simply because of their gender --
which is unacceptable and unlawful," said EEOC Chairwoman
Ida L. Castro. "Female employees are still undervalued in
the 21st century workforce, as evidenced not only by this
case but by the thousands of other wage bias charges filed
with the Commission every year."
In fiscal year (FY) 1999, the EEOC received approximately
3,800 wage-related charges filed by women, accounting for
about 5% of all discrimination charges filed with the
agency. Since FY 1992, the Commission has obtained a
cumulative total of nearly $100 million through its
enforcement and litigation efforts for all charging parties
alleging wage bias.
Ms. Simmons-Beathea was fired by BCAC in November 1996.
Although the company alleged that her termination was due
to an internal reorganization, the action occurred one
month after she presented a study to BCAC's Board which
pointed out the tremendous disparity between her salary and
the much higher salaries of male executive directors in
other markets which operate community-based cable
television. Almost immediately after the termination, a
male with less experience replaced her as executive
director with a 20% higher salary.
"This is the second EEOC settlement announced this week
involving stark examples of women in higher level jobs
being grossly underpaid compared to men in similar
positions," said EEOC General Counsel C. Gregory Stewart.
"The EEOC will hold employers accountable for such
discriminatory conduct, as well as for retaliating against
female employees who speak out against sex-based wage
bias."
Yesterday, the EEOC's Detroit office announced a $100,000
settlement of a wage discrimination case involving a female
professor at Eastern Michigan University who was paid
substantially less than her males colleagues for the better
part of a decade.
"It is important for workers to know not only that they
have the right to equal pay, but also the right to come
forward and complain of discrimination without jeopardizing
their employment," said EEOC's Baltimore Regional Attorney
Gerald S. Kiel. "Hopefully, more workers will come to
understand and assert their rights under the law as a
result of these settlements."
The BCAC case is the second recent equal pay settlement by
the Baltimore office. In August 1999, it reached a $200,000
voluntary settlement in an equal pay suit against R.E.
Michel Co. (a major heating, ventilation, and air
conditioning wholesaler) on behalf of Sharon Long, a
purchasing agent who was paid less than half of the salary
of her male colleagues. The case was featured at a White
House event on the President's Equal Pay Initiative on
January 24, 2000.
Employees and applicants in Maryland who are subjected to a
discriminatory employment practice are encouraged to
contact the EEOC's Baltimore District Office. The office,
open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., can
be contacted by phone at (410) 962-3835, or in person or by
mail at 10 South Howard Street, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201.
In addition to enforcing the Equal Pay Act, which protects
men and women who perform substantially equal work in the
same establishment from sex-based wage discrimination, the
EEOC enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which
prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color,
religion, sex, or national origin; the ADEA, which protects
workers 40 years of age and older; the Americans with
Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against
qualified individuals with disabilities in the private
sector and state and local governments; prohibitions
against discrimination affecting persons with disabilities
in the federal government; and sections of the Civil Rights
Act of 1991. Further information about the Commission is
available on the agency's web site at
www.eeoc.gov.