U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued the following announcement on Feb. 12.
Park School of Baltimore, Inc., a private school in Pikesville, Md., will pay $41,000 and furnish significant equitable relief to settle a federal sex discrimination suit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced.
According to the suit, the Park School hired a male as head softball coach in the spring of 2014 and renewed his employment contract as head softball coach in 2015 and 2016. The EEOC charged that despite his satisfactory job performance, in 2017 the Park School told the coach that it would not renew his contract for the 2017 softball season because of its "preference for female leadership."
Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on sex. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Park School of Baltimore Inc., Civil Action No.1:18-cv-02319) in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, Baltimore Division, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.
In addition to the $41,000 in monetary damages to the coach, the two-year consent decree resolving the lawsuit provides significant equitable relief, including prohibiting the Park School from engaging in gender discrimination in the future. The Park School will implement a policy prohibiting gender discrimination and retaliation and provide training on federal anti-discrimination laws and the company's policies. The Park School will also post a notice regarding the settlement and employee rights under Title VII and report any future complaints of gender discrimination to the EEOC.
"Title VII protects both men and women from unequal treatment based on gender," said EEOC Regional Attorney Debra M. Lawrence. "We are pleased the Park School worked with us to resolve this quickly, fairly and without incurring unnecessary litigation expenses."
EEOC Philadelphia District Director Jamie R. Williamson added, "The EEOC is committed to ensuring that all employees, men and women, are evaluated based on their qualifications, not their gender."
Original source can be found here.