Today, on Equal Pay Day, Andrus Anderson LLP filed a gender pay gap lawsuit against The Walt Disney Company, alleging that it routinely pays its women employees less than men. The New York Times reported on the story.
LaRonda Rasmussen, a plaintiff in the case, alleges that she has been paid tens of thousands of dollars less than her male co-workers, despite the fact that she performs the same work. Ms. Rasmussen’s lawsuit seeks to close the egregious gender pay gap that appears to be engrained in Disney’s culture.
“As Disney nears its 100th year in existence, it needs to catch up with the times,” said pay gap attorney Lori E. Andrus. “The gender pay gap addressed by this lawsuit is all too familiar, and women are fed up with being treated as cheap labor. We hope that this lawsuit will shed some light on the pay discrimination that Disney is subjecting its hard-working female employees to. It is only fair to demand equal pay for equal work.”
Ms. Rasmussen is an exemplary employee who has worked for Disney for more than 11 years. Her lawsuit alleges that until 2017 she earned at least $24,000 less than the average male holding the same title of “Manager, Product Development.” When Ms. Rasmussen brought the issue to Disney’s attention, she received a long-overdue raise, but is still earning $5,000 less than the average man holding the same title. Her experience is not isolated: multiple other women at Disney report earning far less than their male counterparts, including Karen Moore, another plaintiff in the case.
The lawsuit, Rasmussen v. The Walt Disney Company, et al., Case No. 19STCV10974 (Los Angeles County Superior Court), is brought as a putative class action on behalf of all women employed in California at Disney’s “Studio Entertainment” business segment. The suit alleges that Disney, the largest media company in the world, engages in systemic gender discrimination against its female employees through unequal pay in violation of California’s Equal Pay Act, Labor Code section 1197.5.
Attorneys Lori Andrus and Jennie Lee Anderson of Andrus Anderson LLP represent the plaintiff and the proposed class. Andrus Anderson have a long history of advocating to close the gender pay gap for women. In 2016, the firm successfully settled a $4 million pay discrimination lawsuit against Farmers Insurance, which required the company to distribute backpay for nearly 300 female employees and forced the company to change their policies regarding pay transparency.
If you worked at Disney and believe that you experienced pay discrimination due to gender, you may be able to take part in this class action lawsuit. Contact Andrus Anderson to learn about your potential options.
About Andrus Anderson
Andrus Anderson LLP is a national law firm handling, among other things, cases involving workplace discrimination. The firm’s partners have deep experience in issues related to equal pay, pregnancy discrimination, sexual harassment, unlawful discrimination and other workplace rights issues. Over two decades, firm founders Lori Andrus and Jennie Anderson have handled extensive, complex litigation that not only helps clients achieve justice, but also promotes lasting change that benefits people who would have otherwise been left with an uneven playing field.