Disney to pay $43.3m, vows reform after gender pay lawsuit
Walt Disney is facing significant trouble after being accused of gender pay inequality for the same job positions. The company has agreed to pay $43.3 million in damages and hire a pay expert. This is yet another major crisis for Disney in recent years.
Walt Disney has agreed to pay $43.3 million and hire a paid expert following a class-action lawsuit in which female employees accused the company of unequal pay for women.
According to the lawsuit, around 9,000 women employed at Disney over eight years earned $150 million less than men in equivalent positions. This is not Disney's first scandal of this type, with reports about the company's approach to employees surfacing more frequently each month.
LaRonda Rasmussen, the initial plaintiff, discovered five years ago that six of her colleagues in similar positions received significantly higher salaries. One of them, despite having less experience, earned $20,000 more annually than she did.
Huge scandal at Disney
More current and former female employees joined the lawsuit. Disney tried to halt the legal proceedings and subsequently challenged the allegations and findings in the lawsuit. However, after the media spotlighted the issue, this did not prevent the company from incurring a massive penalty and the ensuing scandal.
An analysis of Disney’s pay data from April 2015 to December 2022 found that women in the same positions earned, on average, about 2% less than men.
As part of the settlement, Disney will pay compensation and hire an independent expert to analyze the company's pay policy and propose changes to eliminate pay discrimination.
