U of Calif proposes $12M to settle LANL sex/race bias claim

[RebLem]

LANL: UC offers $12 million to settle

By ANDY LENDERMAN | The New Mexican
May 20, 2006

The University of California has agreed to pay some Hispanic and female employees at Los Alamos National Laboratory $12 million as part of a settlement proposal resulting from two class-actions lawsuits alleging job discrimination.

If U.S. District Judge William P. Johnson approves the settlement proposal, the money will be shared by female and Hispanic employees who worked at the lab between December 2000 and the present, according to plaintiff's lawyer John Bienvenu of Santa Fe.

"We are confident that this settlement will send a message to the current and future operator of Los Alamos National Laboratory, as well as other government contractors, that women are entitled to equal pay for equal work," plaintiff Laura Barber said in a statement.

As part of the settlement, the lab "expressly disputes any allegation of discrimination or wrongdoing and does not admit any liability," lab officials said in a news release Friday.

Lab spokesman James Rickman said the settlement was reached "to avoid millions of dollars ... in legal fees and years of time and effort spent on defending costly lawsuits."

The University of California operates the lab for the federal government.

One lawsuit was filed in state District Court in January 2004 by six plaintiffs: Yolanda Garcia, Loyda Martinez, Gloria Bennett, Yvonne Ebelacker, the Hispano Roundtable of New Mexico and the University Professional and Technical Employees Association. The action claimed violations of federal and state civil-right laws and the federal Equal Pay Act, according to Bienvenu.

The second suit was filed by Barber in December 2003 in U.S. District Court. She alleged violations of the Equal Pay Act and breach of contract. Both suits were consolidated in U.S. District Court.

Bienvenu said the plaintiffs "succeeded in forcing the University of California to acknowledge that it owes compensation to the women and Hispanic employees that have been treated unfairly."

In January 2004, the lab gave raises ranging from $170 to $10,000 to 670 employees in an effort to deal with pay disparities.

Then-lab Director Pete Nanos pledged to address the issue. In 2003, a study known as the Welch Report established that Hispanics and women earned less money than white men in certain jobs at the lab.

"The salary initiative was an attempt to correct that," Rickman said. He said the Welch Report did not show any pattern of discrimination. But the report "never went far enough," Manny Trujillo of the University Professional and Technical Employees Union said.

Contact Andy Lenderman at 995-3827 or alenderman@sfnewmexican.com.



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Reader comment:

By Chris Mechels (Submitted: 05/20/2006 10:29 am)
My perception, as a retired LANL staff member, is that discrimination wasn't intentional, it just grew out of the "good old boy" culture. GOBs take care of GOBs. The reason that discrimination is an ongoing problem at LANL is that their policies and practices allow for it to continue. For instance, LANL policies, unlike the UC policies have far too many "loopholes" and "work arounds" in the hiring process which allows managers to hire whom they please, not necessarity the most qualified. With this freedom, managers hire those who are "sympathetic" and "share their values". In other words, GOBs hire GOBs.

The way to "fix" this is not just to hand out some cash to settle the lawsuit. The policies need to be changed to eliminate the "loopholes" and require an objective evaluation of applicants, and the HR Division needs to be reformed/energized to actively monitor the process.

Will any of this happen under the new operator, LANS? We can only hope. If the policies aren't changed, and the attitude, this problem will continue.

The other problem at LANL which isn't talked about much, is sexual harrassment. This also stems from the GOB culture. It is so bad that supervisors who have "consensual" sex with their employees, in the work place, keep their jobs. How can this be possible? "Consensual" sex with a subordinate, is an oxymoron. The HR staff has too frequently supported the management in these cases. This needs to be dealt with, now.

LANL really needs to be cleaned up, of these, and other, dirty, ingrained practices.

http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/43922.html#

[DavidRoss]

The other problem at LANL which isn't talked about much, is sexual harrassment. This also stems from the GOB culture. It is so bad that supervisors who have "consensual" sex with their employees, in the work place, keep their jobs. How can this be possible? "Consensual" sex with a subordinate, is an oxymoron.

Mr. Mechels’s comment reminds of the day some 25 years ago when the faculty senate at Cal voted to condone the not-rare-enough practice of professors and TAs having sexual relations with students.

[Ralph]

The other problem at LANL which isn't talked about much, is sexual harrassment. This also stems from the GOB culture. It is so bad that supervisors who have "consensual" sex with their employees, in the work place, keep their jobs. How can this be possible? "Consensual" sex with a subordinate, is an oxymoron.

Mr. Mechels’s comment reminds of the day some 25 years ago when the faculty senate at Cal voted to condone the not-rare-enough practice of professors and TAs having sexual relations with students.

*****

That kind of thing really happens

[RebLem]

The other problem at LANL which isn't talked about much, is sexual harrassment. This also stems from the GOB culture. It is so bad that supervisors who have "consensual" sex with their employees, in the work place, keep their jobs. How can this be possible? "Consensual" sex with a subordinate, is an oxymoron.

Mr. Mechels’s comment reminds of the day some 25 years ago when the faculty senate at Cal voted to condone the not-rare-enough practice of professors and TAs having sexual relations with students.

*****

That kind of thing really happens

These days and for the last 40 years or so, yes. Not in Dittersdorf's day, though.

[Corlyss_D]

The other problem at LANL which isn't talked about much, is sexual harrassment. This also stems from the GOB culture. It is so bad that supervisors who have "consensual" sex with their employees, in the work place, keep their jobs. How can this be possible? "Consensual" sex with a subordinate, is an oxymoron.

Mr. Mechels’s comment reminds of the day some 25 years ago when the faculty senate at Cal voted to condone the not-rare-enough practice of professors and TAs having sexual relations with students.

*****

That kind of thing really happens

What? The sex or voting not to condemn it?

[Ralph]

The other problem at LANL which isn't talked about much, is sexual harrassment. This also stems from the GOB culture. It is so bad that supervisors who have "consensual" sex with their employees, in the work place, keep their jobs. How can this be possible? "Consensual" sex with a subordinate, is an oxymoron.

Mr. Mechels’s comment reminds of the day some 25 years ago when the faculty senate at Cal voted to condone the not-rare-enough practice of professors and TAs having sexual relations with students.

*****

That kind of thing really happens

What? The sex or voting not to condemn it?

*****

Both.