Outback Settles 'Glass Ceiling' Lawsuit
December 30, 2009 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Outback Steakhouse has agreed to
pay $19 million to settle a lawsuit alleging gender discrimination against
thousands of women at hundreds of its corporately-owned restaurants nationwide.
According to an announcement by the U.S. Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Outback discriminated against its female
employees with respect to the terms and conditions of employment, and denied
women equal opportunities for advancement. The EEOC alleged in the lawsuit that
female employees hit a glass ceiling at Outback and could not get promoted to
the higher-level profit-sharing management positions in the restaurants.
In addition, the EEOC alleged that women were denied favorable
job assignments, particularly kitchen management experience, which was required
for employees to be considered for the top management job in the restaurants.
The $19 million in monetary relief will be administered
through a claims process in which an administrator will send letters to all
female workers employed at corporately-owned Outback restaurants from 2002 to
the present who have at least three years of tenure.
In addition to the monetary relief, the settlement, contained
in a four-year consent decree, requires that Outback:
- Institute an online application system for employees
interested in managerial and other supervisory positions;
- Employ a human resource executive in the newly created
position of Vice President of People;
- Employ an outside consultant for at least two years who
will determine compliance with the terms of the decree and analyze data from
the online application system to determine whether women are being provide
equal opportunities for promotion; and
- Report every six months to the EEOC on carrying out the
terms of the decree.
"We encourage women who believe they were
discriminated against by Outback to come forward and complete the claims form
to obtain monetary relief. We also encourage all current female employees at
Outback to take advantage of the new application process and let Outback know
that they are interested in promotion," said EEOC Denver Trial Attorney
Stephanie Struble, who jointly led the litigation effort, in the announcement.
"There are still
too many glass ceilings left to shatter in workplaces throughout corporate
America," said EEOC Acting Chairman Stuart J. Ishimaru. "… Hopefully
this major settlement will remind employers about the perils of perpetuating
promotion practices that keep women from advancing at work."
Rebecca Moore
editors@plansponsor.com