Center for Rehab and Healthcare, in Raytown, Mo., a Kansas City suburb, violated federal law, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit. According to the EEOC, Maisha Hill, a licensed practical nurse (LPN), was hired in March 2017 by Edgewood Manor at the rate of $21 per hour. Two male LPNs performing the same job were paid $25 per hour. According to the suit, Edgewood Manor admitted it should have paid Hill $25 per hour. Such alleged conduct violates the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which prohibits employers from paying women and men differently for doing a job with the same required skill, effort, responsibility, and working conditions, unless the employer relies on a factor other than sex for the pay differential. The EEOC filed its lawsuit (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Edgewood Manor OPCO LLC, Civil Action No. 4:19-cv-00760), in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The EEOC seeks back pay and other monetary relief for Hill, declaratory judgment, and an order preventing future discrimination.
