Sexual Discrimination in Promotion

[SGrau]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? NJ

I began working for a school in 1991. My boss and I were both hired a few weeks apart and we were the only staff. He was the manager, I was the tech.

Between 1991 and 2000, he was promoted to Director and when he left in 2000, he was replaced by another Director. However, over the past 13 years, I have assumed the majority of the duties and responsibilities of the Director who will be retiring this year.

Twice in the last 6 years, the Director has submitted paperwork for my promotion to manager. In 2007, the Director submitted my job description to Human Resources who replied that the job description was a Manager's job. The paperwork from the Director even stated that I had been doing the job of manager for some time already, yet my promotion was declined in favor of 'Supervisor' at significantly less pay.

In 2012, the paperwork was submitted again, this time with the job description altered to include even more duties and responsibilities. Human Resources requested a reason for these additional duties and the paperwork was submitted with the notation 'previously the duty of the Director.'

Again, I was turned down and instead given the position of Coordinator, again at significantly less pay than Manager.

I have the original job description for manager that my first boss initially held. My duties and responsibilities include all of those of Manager and have now had most of the Director's duties added as well.

Both my original boss and the Director who is retiring this year are men and I am a woman. Do I have grounds for a discrimination lawsuit?

Thank you,

SGrau

 

[sandyclaus]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? NJ

I began working for a school in 1991. My boss and I were both hired a few weeks apart and we were the only staff. He was the manager, I was the tech.

Between 1991 and 2000, he was promoted to Director and when he left in 2000, he was replaced by another Director. However, over the past 13 years, I have assumed the majority of the duties and responsibilities of the Director who will be retiring this year.

Twice in the last 6 years, the Director has submitted paperwork for my promotion to manager. In 2007, the Director submitted my job description to Human Resources who replied that the job description was a Manager's job. The paperwork from the Director even stated that I had been doing the job of manager for some time already, yet my promotion was declined in favor of 'Supervisor' at significantly less pay.

In 2012, the paperwork was submitted again, this time with the job description altered to include even more duties and responsibilities. Human Resources requested a reason for these additional duties and the paperwork was submitted with the notation 'previously the duty of the Director.'

Again, I was turned down and instead given the position of Coordinator, again at significantly less pay than Manager.

I have the original job description for manager that my first boss initially held. My duties and responsibilities include all of those of Manager and have now had most of the Director's duties added as well.

Both my original boss and the Director who is retiring this year are men and I am a woman. Do I have grounds for a discrimination lawsuit?

Thank you,

SGrau

Just because your original boss and the retiring director are men, and you are not, does not necessarily mean that the reason you were turned down is because you are a woman. Unless you can find evidence of that, or that the company has demonstrated a history of promoting only men to positions of higher pay and responsibility, there is no reason to believe that your gender is the reason for being turned down for the promotion.

It certainly couldn't hurt to consult with an employment law attorney to see whether they can come up with that missing evidence, if it exists, or if they may have a different take on your situation.

 

[cbg]

Any time a job is filled, there is a 50% chance that it will be filled by someone of the opposite gender.

 

[LdiJ]

Any time a job is filled, there is a 50% chance that it will be filled by someone of the opposite gender.

But it doesn't sound like a job is being filled. It sounds as though she is continuing in the same job that she has always had (albiet with many more duties and responsiblities) but not being given the corresponding title and pay to go with the job.

Her boss wanted to give her a manager title and pay, they gave her supervisor instead.
Her boss wanted to give her a manager title and pay again, they gave her coordinator instead.

It doesn't sound like they have brought anyone new in over her, other than that second director in 2000.

Its a school, and based on the titles I am going to guess that its adult education of some sort. There may be some sort of discrimination going on, or it may be that the school is trying to keep salaries lower. If there is any kind of discrimination going on, its probably not discrimination because she is a woman, but rather discrimination because she started out as a tech. Something similar happened to me almost 35 years ago. My bosses kept trying to get me promoted to management, but HR kept saying that they couldn't authorize it because I didn't have any management experience.

 

[cbg]

I would tend to agree.

 

[ecmst12]

And when that happens, it's usually a sign to take your experience and expertise and find another company that will pay you what you're worth.

 

[LdiJ]

And when that happens, it's usually a sign to take your experience and expertise and find another company that will pay you what you're worth.

And interestingly enough, the companies often seriously regret that they didn't give the prior employee the title and salary deserved. I happen to know that the company I worked for did end up seriously regretting it. Why?, because I still had lots of friends there and they ended up having to hire 3 people to handle the workload that I handled on my own...which cost them a lot more than giving me the title and salary would have cost them. My boss actually got demoted because she couldn't do HER job without me.

However, that is the reality of business.

 

[SGrau]

In my case, I have been strung along by my superiors for years and led to believe that I would be paid for the job I'd been doing. I doubt that they had a hand in the school refusing the promotions, but at this point I've been here for almost 21 years and would lose my pension if I went elsewhere.

Sadly, it does look like I may have to go despite the fact that I like my job and co-workers as it seems that, rather than promote me, they intend to replace my retiring boss with another director, therefore severely cutting down the chances of my receiving the promotion. Worse, it seems they intend to have me train this new Director to do my job at nearly double my salary.