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Press Release 01-17-2014

EEOC Sues NFI Roadrail and NFI Industries  for Gender-Based Wage Discrimination

Woman Paid Less Than Men for Working in Same Position, Federal Agency Charges

DALLAS - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today that it has filed a lawsuit for gender-based wage discrimination lawsuit against NFI Road Rail LLC and NFI Industries, Inc.

In the suit, the EEOC alleges that NFI, a New Jersey-based business that provides logistics, transportation and warehouse services to manufacturers and retailers, with an NFI Roadrail office in Irving, Texas, paid a female director less than the salaries paid to two males for doing the same job. The EEOC's suit also asserts that the female employee was ultimately forced to quit her job on Sept. 27, 2011.

According to the EEOC's lawsuit, Amy Brown held the position of director of intermodal operations prior to and after male comparators who were paid more for performing the same job. According to Brown, despite having raised the pay disparity with management on a number of occasions, she never achieved pay parity and was simply told by one of the owners to be "thankful" for what she got.

"This is a textbook case of paying women less than men for doing the same job in what can be seen as a typically male-oriented industry," said William Backhaus, trial attorney for the EEOC's Dallas District Office. "Employers have a statutory duty under federal law to pay women what men are paid for doing the same job."

Such alleged conduct violates the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA) and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC filed suit filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division (Civil Action No. 3:14-cv-00181-N) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The agency seeks injunctive relief, including the formulation of policies -- or more fairly applied pay ranges -- that prevent and correct pay disparities for the same or similar jobs performed by employees, irrespective of gender. The suit also seeks lost wages and compensatory and punitive damages, among other forms of relief.

"Correcting practices that perpetuate pay disparities suffered by women is a strategic priority of this agency," said Robert A. Canino, regional attorney for the EEOC's Dallas District. "It certainly strikes at our sense of fairness to see that every time Ms. Brown stepped into the gap left by higher-paid men who did not stay or work out with the company, the employer only left her another gap - a gender gap in pay. Our intention is that with this suit, EEOC can help to fill that gap."

The EEOC is responsible for enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the EEOC is available on its web site at www.eeoc.gov.