Four Salt Lake County personnel department employees, including the equal employment opportunity manager, have filed gender pay discrimination complaints against the county.
Although the complaints were filed with the Anti-discrimination Division of the State Industrial Commission several weeks ago, participants and county officials did not disclose the action until questioned about it this week.While details of the complaints are being kept secret pending the outcome of negotiations, those involved said the complaints relate to alleged gender pay bias and pay classification discrimination against women employees.
Mari Maldonado-Jacobs, the county's equal employment opportunity manager, confirmed she was one of the four women who filed actions against the county. However, she declined to comment further, referring all questions to her attorney, Erik Strindberg.
According to Strindberg, settlement negotiations have entered a "sensitive stage," and he, too, refused further comment.
Personnel Director Felix McGow-an said all four complaints came in the wake of pay reclassification in his department. All four women received pay raises but felt they deserved more, he said.
"The complaints will be reviewed through the established procedures," McGowan said. "It would not be appropriate to discuss the merits or lack thereof at this time. To do so could damage the county's position or that of the employees."
McGowan said that although the four employees named the county as a whole in their complaints, the reclassification decisions were made by him. A closed settlement hearing on the complaints is scheduled for Nov. 16.