EEOC Sues Fastenal Company for Pay Discrimination

Supply Distributer Paid Female Employees Less  Than Male Coworkers, Federal Agency Charges

HARRISBURG,  Pa. -Fastenal Company, an international industrial and construction supply  distributor, violated federal law when it paid female sales support employees  lower wages than men, the U.S. Equal  Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it announced.

According  to the EEOC's lawsuit, Fastenal paid two female sales support employees lower  hourly wages than their male coworkers at its Manchester, Pa., facility, even  though the women were doing substantially equal work. One of the women trained  two of her male coworkers when they were hired, yet she received lower wages, the  EEOC charges.

Such  alleged conduct violates the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and Title VII of the Civil  Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Fastenal Company, Civil Action  No. 1:18-cv-01753-CCC)  in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania after first  attempting to reach a voluntary pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation  process.

"Women  should be paid equal wages when they do the same work as male coworkers," said EEOC  Philadelphia District Office Regional Attorney Debra M. Lawrence. "Fairness and  federal law require it."

EEOC  Philadelphia District Office Director Jamie R. Williamson added, "Remedying pay  discrimination is a priority issue for the EEOC." 

The  EEOC's Philadelphia District Office is one of four offices in the Philadelphia  District, which has jurisdiction over Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, West  Virginia and parts of New Jersey and Ohio. Attorneys in the Philadelphia  District Office also prosecute discrimination cases in Washington, D.C. and parts  of Virginia.

Ensuring  equal pay protections for all workers is of one of six national priorities  identified by the EEOC's Strategic Enforcement Plan.

The EEOC advances opportunity in  the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination.  More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest  EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.