Human Resources: Executive Summary: Sex Discrimination and Harassment

Gender bias in the workplace remained a hot legal issue during 2004 and the first half of 2005, with such claims ranking as the number one discrimination complaint. Nonetheless, there was also some moderately good news from an employer's point of view.

The number of overall claims filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) remained virtually static in 2004 when compared with the preceding year. Claims related to sexual harassment, pay disparity and pregnancy discrimination actually dropped somewhat. Monetary settlements for sex harassment claims saw a dramatic decrease. The EEOC collected $50 million in such claims during the 2003 fiscal year, but only $37.1 million in the 2004 fiscal year. And monetary recovery for pregnancy-related charges was also slightly lower, with about $1.1 million less collected in 2004 than the previous year.

But the good news ended there. The EEOC collected about $2 million more in 2004 than in 2003 for all sex-related claims. And the agency collected $3 million more in pay disparity claims in 2004 than it did in 2003, although that's still less than the amount the agency recovered in 2002.

The EEOC and state employment agencies say the number of sexual harassment claims is rising, especially among minorities. While the number of claims filed by white women - who still make the majority of complaints - has risen by about 5% over a 10-year period, according to one study by the National Partnership for Women and Families, charges by minority women have increased substantially more. Claims by Hispanic women, for example, rose 120%; Asian women, 100%; and black women, 42%.

Even worse, the number of lawsuits claiming sex bias appears also to be on the upswing. And when those cases reach juries, the result can be dismal for the employer, with multimillion dollar verdicts a distinct possibility. In 2005, for example, a woman who complained she had been passed over for promotion - as well as belittled and ridiculed, excluded from work outings, and subjected to sexist remarks - won a $29.2-million verdict from UBS Warburg LLC, a Swiss financial services firm. The verdict is thought to be the largest ever for an individual in an employment discrimination case.

Class-action lawsuits can be even more costly. The Boeing Co. agreed in 2004 to pay $72.5 million to settle such a suit filed by female employees who complained of pay disparities and of being passed over for promotion. The costs are not limited to jury verdicts, settlements or EEOC fines. Replacing employees who leave is costly. At least one commentator puts the price as high as $75,000 to replace one employee.

Gender bias claims have been a persistent problem for many reasons. These include everything from unconscious bias to office romances to blatant harassment and discrimination. Combine those with the fact that more highly educated women are willing to bring suits if they feel their careers are threatened, and the mixture can be volatile and fraught with peril for employers.

Also entering the workforce are the clashes that are raging in U.S. society over sexual orientation. As gays, lesbians and transgendered individuals seek legal recognition for their status, a backlash is growing among those who see those orientations as sinful or offensive. That culture clash can enter the workforce in many ways, from disputes between employees to protests over policy manuals that mandate tolerance for all sides.

With an estimated one-fifth to one-fourth of the workforce saying they themselves have been victims of gender bias or know someone who has, these issues are likely to remain critically important for the foreseeable future.

To have full access to this report, become a member of i4cp today at www.i4cp.com.

The Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp, inc.) improves corporate productivity through a combination of research, community, tools and technology focused on the management of human capital. With more than 100 leading organizations as members, including many of the best-known companies in the world, i4cp draws upon one of the industry’s largest and most-experienced research teams and Executives-in-Residence to produce more than 10,000 pages annually of rapid, reliable and respected research and analysis surrounding all facets of the management of people in organizations. Additionally, i4cp identifies and analyzes the upcoming major issues and future trends that are expected to influence workforce productivity and provides member clients with tools and technology to execute leading-edge strategies and "next" practices on these issues and trends. i4cp is a for-profit company with offices in St. Petersburg, Florida.