Remedies Available for Sexual Discrimination and Unequal Pay

Do you get lesser pay than your male co-worker (with the same job-related particulars) does? The Equal Pay Act (EPA) makes it compulsory for an employer to pay equally to male and female workers with equal jobs. However, unequal pay is acceptable under certain circumstances (based on seniority, merit or incentive systems).

If a female employee gets lesser pay than male employees do with the same job, this may be a case of sex discrimination at the workplace in Miami. How do you know whether you are a victim? It is not easy to assess, and prove, this point without legal help. You need to talk to a professional working at an employment law firm.

What would you need o prove at court? This depends on the specific circumstances of your case. However, you would need to prove that you got unequal pay for equal work. You would also need to prove that none of the exceptions applies in your case. If your employer fails to justify the pay difference, you could get various benefits.

Any violation of the EPA by an employer, if proved at court, makes an employee eligible for the following benefits.

A rise in pay – to match that of your male co-worker’s with the same work
Back pay – increase in the wages and other benefits equal to the difference between your and your male co-worker’s pay for the violation period
Liquidated damages – award equal to the amount of back pay

You may be eligible for a recovery of attorney fees as well.

Moreover, if you face any retaliatory action, like firing or demotion, because of filing a claim, the employer must rectify it too, i.e. reinstate or promote you and pay you the lost wages and benefits. That is not all. The employer would have to raise the pay of every female worker with the same profile as yours to match that of the male co-workers.

In most cases, the Miami employment law firm would let you know whether you can combine the claim of EPA violation with that of the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 violation. If you do, you may be eligible for additional benefits as well. As per the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission directives, this may be possible.

This remedy may include compensatory damages (only if you do not opt for the liquidated damages) and punitive damages, meant to punish the employer and prevent the occurrence of such discrimination in future.