Wisconsin school district settles pay discrimination lawsuit

A Wisconsin school district will pay $450,000 and raise salaries to settle a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission pay discrimination lawsuit filed on behalf of female employees, the agency said Friday.

The EEOC charged that the Verona Area School District paid nine female special education teachers and a female school psychologist lower salaries than more recently hired male colleagues.

It said the teachers were paid $3,000 to $17,000 less per year than a male colleague, while the female school psychologist was paid at least $16,000 less per year than her male colleague, in violation of the Equal Pay Act of 1963.

The district rejected the teachers’ and school psychologist’s requests for raises to match the pay of the more recently hired, more highly paid male co-workers, but repeatedly negotiated and agreed to salary increases sought by male teachers, the agency said.

The four-year consent decree settling the charges requires the school district to raise the salaries of the women in the suit; review its pay policy; conduct antidiscrimination training; post a notice to employees at its worksites about the lawsuit; and submit semi-annual reports to the EEOC.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Madison, Wisconsin.

The district’s attorneys did not respond to a request for comment.