Chicago Lawyer Accuses Her Firm of Gender Discrimination

August 16, 2016

A lawyer in the Chicago office of Sedgwick has sued the firm for gender discrimination, unequal pay and retaliation.

The insurance lawyer, alleged in a lawsuit filed in California that female attorneys “cannot crack the glass ceiling of equity partnership at Sedgwick.”

The San Francisco-based firm has more than 300 lawyers, 26 in Chicago, and last year booked $183.0 million in revenue. In the suit, the woman described being publicly singled out in a meeting by a powerful partner who recommended lowering her pay because she “needed to learn to behave.”

“Sedgwick’s male-dominated culture systematically excludes women from positions of power within the firm, which in turn leads to lower compensation for female attorneys as compared to male attorneys,” the lawsuit says.

The firm retaliated against the woman after she filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in February, seeking to force the dispute into private arbitration, the lawsuit says.

The firm is “confident there has been absolutely no discrimination or retaliation in the partner compensation process or otherwise, and we will defend the firm against these baseless allegations.”

This woman is not the first to accuse a firm of discrimination. In January, a former partner at LeClairRyan sued in January in Virginia alleging unequal pay and retaliation. In 2013, Greenberg Traurig settled a class-action brought by female attorneys.

While this case is in California, our Florida Discrimination Lawyers at Whittel & Melton know the issue of unequal pay is a widespread problem that affects women across the country.

A recent compilation by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that women face unequal pay in most industries. An average for all full-time and salary workers shows median weekly wages for men being $895 and $726 for women. For marketing and sales managers: men- $1,603 and women – $1,258. For human resource workers: men – $1,158 women – $984. For personal financial advisers: men – $1,738 women – $1,033. Sadly, the gender pay gap is reportedly worse for mothers and older working women.

Wage inequality is a form of discrimination, and our Florida Discrimination Lawyers at Whittel & Melton have the legal knowledge to protect victims of gender discrimination.

If you believe you have been the victim of gender discrimination in Florida, let us help. Call us today at 866-608-5529 for a free consultation or contact us online.