Disney has agreed to pay $43.25 million to settle a class action lawsuit that accused the company of systematically paying women less than male employees with the same experience, Report informs referring to Variety.
The plaintiffs’ attorneys filed a motion on Monday to seek approval of the settlement, which would cover a broad range of salaried Disney employees in California.
If the petition is granted, thousands of women who have worked for Disney since April 1, 2015, will receive checks to compensate for the wage disparity.
The suit was filed in 2019, alleging that Disney policies — including basing a new hire’s salary on their pay at their previous employer — resulted in discrimination against women. A study commissioned by the plaintiffs found that one category of women was paid 2% less than their male counterparts, while a separate category was paid 58% less.
Disney continues to dispute the validity of the study, but has agreed to use it as a basis on which to apportion the settlement funds. Under the agreement, the plaintiffs’ attorneys can seek judicial approval for up to one third of the settlement amount, or about $14.4 million, to cover legal fees, plus $1.8 million in litigation expenses.
Nine women were named in the lawsuit as representatives of the Disney employees. LaRonda Rasmussen, a financial analyst at the company, discovered in 2017 that six men with her title were all making significantly more than she was, according to the lawsuit. After she complained, she received a $25,000 raise, but was still paid less than her average male counterpart, according to the suit.