The Justice Department has initiated legal proceedings against the Mississippi State Senate, accusing it of racial discrimination against a Black former staff attorney in its Legislative Services Office (LSO). The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, claims that the Senate violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by paying her significantly less than her white counterparts.
Title VII is a federal law prohibiting employment discrimination based on race, color, sex, national origin, or religion. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke stated: “Discriminatory employment practices, like paying a Black employee less than their white colleagues for the same work, are not only unfair, they are unlawful.” She emphasized that this lawsuit aims to address and prevent race-based pay disparities.
The complaint alleges that Kristie Metcalfe was paid substantially less than other LSO attorneys during her eight-year tenure despite having similar job responsibilities. It further claims that Ms. Metcalfe was consistently underpaid compared to her white colleagues from the start of her employment in 2011. Her initial salary was reportedly lower than any LSO attorney's salary in over three decades. Additionally, while other attorneys received significant raises shortly after she was hired, Ms. Metcalfe did not benefit from such increases.
Near the end of her tenure, a white attorney with comparable experience but no legislative background was hired at a higher salary than Ms. Metcalfe's. Despite raising concerns about this disparity with Senate officials responsible for setting salaries at LSO, Ms. Metcalfe's request for equal pay was denied.
The Justice Department seeks back pay and compensatory damages for Ms. Metcalfe through this lawsuit and aims to secure injunctive relief to prevent future occurrences of such discrimination.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) initially investigated Ms. Metcalfe’s allegations before referring them to the Justice Department for litigation purposes.
Trial Attorneys Louis Whitsett and Young Choi from the Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section are handling this case alongside Assistant U.S. Attorney James Graves III for the Southern District of Mississippi.