LAKE RIDGE ACADEMY TO PAY NEARLY $1 MILLION FOR RETALIATORY DISCHARGE, JURY RULE IN EEOC SUIT

Federal Agency Says Prep School Fired Employee for Protesting Unequal Pay for Women

CLEVELAND – The U.S. Equal  Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced that a jury here has  returned a unanimous verdict against Lake  Ridge Academy  finding that an employee who voiced concern about unequal pay for women was unlawfully  fired in retaliation.

The jury  reached its unanimous verdict in the EEOC lawsuit after hearing testimony which  proved that James Whiteman was fired in retaliation for opposing sex-based wage  discrimination. The jury awarded back  pay of $50,000, front pay of $50,000, and compensatory damages of $500,000. While the jury was deliberating the matter of  punitive damages, the parties agreed to settle the case for a total of $950,000. The EEOC’s suit was filed in U.S. District  Court Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division, in August 2007  (1:07-cv-02615). Whiteman also filed a  private lawsuit against the school and both cases were heard together.

Whiteman  had been employed at the North Ridgeville, Ohio-based preparatory school as  chair of an accreditation study and was fired after requesting information from  Lake Ridge’s Head of Schools and the Chief Financial Officer regarding possible  pay inequity when he noted that males were being paid more than females for  similar education and work history.

In addition  to the protections against retaliation that are included in all of the laws  enforced by EEOC, Title VII also prohibits employment discrimination based on  race, color, religion, sex and national origin, and protects employees who  complain or oppose such discrimination from retaliation.

“In this  case, the people have spoken,” said EEOC Regional Attorney Jacqueline McNair, whose  Philadelphia District also includes Cleveland.  “The jury’s verdict in this case should  make it clear to employers that retaliation has no place in the work  environment.”

Whiteman’s  private counsel, Gregory Gordillo of Gordillo & Gordillo, LLC, added, “James  Whiteman had nothing to gain and everything to lose by standing up for female  teachers that were afraid to do it themselves.  He is a true hero and the resolution of this case is true justice. I am so honored to have represented him.” Gordillo can be contacted at (216) 875-5500.

According  to its web site www.lakeridgeacademy.org, “Founded in 1963, Lake  Ridge Academy is an independent, co-educational day school that serves  Northeastern Ohio and the only independent school on Cleveland’s West Side,”  and “enroll[s] qualified students in grades K-12 without regard to race, color,  religion, nationality or ethnic background.”

Retaliation  charge filings with the EEOC totaled 26,663 in Fiscal Year 2007, up 18 percent  from the prior year to a record high level – and double the number of  retaliation filings in FY 1992.  Retaliation is now the second most frequent charge filing with EEOC  office nationwide.

The EEOC enforces  federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the Commission is  available on its web site http://www.eeoc.gov.