GREENBELT, Md. (AP) – A lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has been settled after a judge ruled that a Maryland county violated the 1963 Equal Pay Act by paying woman less than similarly qualified male counterparts.
News outlets report that Prince George’s County must pay Joanna Smith $139,633 in lost wages and raise her salary by $24,723 a year to ensure her pay is equivalent to that of fellow Department of the Environment civil engineers. An EEOC spokesperson said in a statement Monday that the county’s agreement to the three-year consent decree prevents it from engaging in sex-based wage discrimination in the future.
A statement from County Executive Rushern Baker III’s office says that the U.S. District Court ruling exposed outdated policies and practices.
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