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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 693-4650
In a first-of-its-kind compensation agreement with the U.S. Department
of Labor, the Boeing Co. has agreed to take steps on a corporate-wide basis to
eliminate any pay disparity affecting salaried and executive female and
minority personnel.
The nation's second-largest federal contractor will pay a minimum of
$4.5 million in back pay and salary adjustments to female and minority
employees. This fund will resolve claims of pay disparities raised by the
department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs at the company's
Philadelphia, Huntsville, Ala., and Long Beach, Calif., facilities. The fund
will also remedy any pay disparities that may exist at facilities in Wichita,
Kan., and Tulsa, Okla., as well as at Boeing's corporate headquarters in
Seattle and for low- and mid-level executives throughout the entire company.
Boeing has also agreed to examine and prospectively adjust, as necessary, pay
practices corporate-wide within the next four years. The cost of those
adjustments will be in addition to the $4.5 million fund.
"We will use every tool, including cooperative efforts, innovative
agreements, and vigorous enforcement to maximize compliance with
nondiscrimination laws by federal contractors," Labor Secretary Alexis M.
Herman said. "This is the first agreement that obligates a federal contractor
to conduct self-examinations, make across-the-board salary adjustments at every
facility and then report its results to the department. It establishes a new
paradigm that ensures equal employment opportunity and enhances enforcement
corporate-wide, not just location by location. I commend Boeing for coming to
the table and cooperating with us. All Boeing employees will benefit."
Boeing will also make certain adjustments to its employment practices,
including the manner in which it collects and analyzes data on applicants. The
company will adopt a new approach to gathering applicant information which
addresses the growing use of the Internet as a means of seeking employment.
Previously, Boeing only collected data on individuals who were interviewed for
employment. Now the company will collect information from individuals who
express an interest in working at Boeing and will use this information for
affirmative action and anti-discrimination purposes. This method will help
determine the impact of Boeing's hiring procedures on female and minority
applicants.
"This agreement demonstrates that we will work with all contractors to
ensure fair and equal pay for America's working people regardless of their
gender or race," stated Bernard E. Anderson, assistant secretary of labor for
employment standards. Shirley J. Wilcher, head of the OFCCP, added that "the
most effective way to root out discrimination and eliminate pay disparities is
by coupling enforcement with innovation and cooperation."
The agreement resolves 10 open Office of Federal Contract Compliance
Programs compliance evaluations. However, the agency will continue to conduct
regularly scheduled audits at Boeing sites. The agreement provides for the
initial information, including compensation data, to be given during an
off-site review. It is anticipated that many of these evaluations may be
concluded without full on-site reviews, although OFCCP retains the right to
conduct such reviews where warranted.
Boeing, the largest aerospace company in the world, received $11 billion
in government contracts in 1998. The Seattle-based company employs 202,000
workers nationwide.
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs a division of the
Labor Department's Employment Standards Administration enforces Executive Order
11246 and other laws that prohibit employment discrimination by federal
contractors. OFCCP monitors federal contractors to ensure that they provide
equal employment opportunity without regard to race, gender, color, religion,
national origin, disability or veteran status and that they meet affirmative
action requirements.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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