Consolidated Chicken Products

Consolidated Chicken Products

Felecia Simmons

Total Rewards

June 13, 2011

Dr. Liland Jordan

Introduction

This scenario was regarding a fellow name Sam Jones, who was put in a position to be a

personnel director. While doing research on the company he realized that there were double

standards in pay between the women and men. He brought his findings to the owner John

Birchwood, Sr. and he informed Sam to let well enough alone. Sam decision has to be one that

will benefit the company or he could risk losing his job.

1. Is there a reasonable basis for believing that the company is discriminating against

women? If so, explain what it is and if not, explain why not.

There is a reasonable basis for believing that the company is discriminating against

women. According to the Table 1 Results of Job Evaluation for Plant Jobs the pay range was the

same for both men and women; however the men was paid closer to the higher pay range and the

females were paid at the lower pay range for each labor grade. There were more men working in

the plant. Out of the 100 workers 30 of them were female workers. The woman was doing the

same work as the man and was getting paid the minimum for doing the same work as the man.

The woman who worked in the office fail into the labor grade 1 and they were not paid near the

pay range their position was called for. The women were underpaid and treated unfairly and the

owner did not care because the competition was scarce.

2. Is there reason to believe that women could file an equal pay lawsuit? If so, explain the

reason and if not, explain why not.

Equal Pay Act "prohibit wage differentials based on sex for employees engaged in

commerce or in production of goods for commerce, or who are employed by an enterprise

engaged in commerce or production of goods for commerce" (John Wiley & Sons, p. 110). In

this scenario chicken was a product that was used as a good for commerce. So the women would

have a good case for equal pay because they are making less than their counterparts were

receiving. They can file a lawsuit under the Equal Pay Act because they will be able to show

that they are paid less than the men for doing the same work they are doing that requires the

same skill, effort, responsibility, and are performed under similar working conditions.

3. What additional information would be useful in determining the answer to question 2?

The additional information that would be useful in determining the answer to question 2

are the women willing to fight? The women might do not want to wait for a long drawn out

lawsuit. They are working for the right now so the money is good for them and they might be

able to find anything better so it might not be a reason for those to want a law suit filed. They

could but this is a family oriented business so they probably would just being content with it

being a family run business, having a steady income, and having job security. The bottom line of

the Equal Pay Act pay program is on the average, men and women are paid different rates when

they perform work that is substantially the same; these differences must be shown to b

attributable to one of the allowable differences. By comparing the labor grade and the pay range

for the men and women it will give the women the fighting power they need to file an equal pay

lawsuit.

4. What would be the consequences of each of Sam's options to all of the people involved (e.g.

women, men in the plant, the company, his family)?

Sam has three options that he can explore. Any of the options he chose will have an

impact on the people who work for the company. He could let things go on like they were, and

that will haunt him, because he took the job to make the company better and more effective. He

has training in Equal Employment Opportunity so all that training he did which he thought he

would use for this position would not be used at all. He was brought on for a change so if he

leave everything as it is, nothing will be different so it will be no point of him coming there. If

he has a family by him seeing what is being done how he can teach his family about fairness and

equal pay for all if he is letting it be done in accompany that he works for. If he chooses this

option he comprises his own integrity for a company who is lacking integrity.

The second option is to try to get the company to change its practices, and this option will

benefit all parties involved. With technological changing people jobs and pay needs to