Recently in class, we have been discussing sexual unfairness and the difference between the way women get treated in the job industry and the way men get treated. In a recent article by the Wall Street Journal, Outback Steakhouse had to settle a lawsuit for this reason and it turns out they had to fork out $19 million to pay back thousands of women who were treated unfairly. The suit was filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission who stated that there were no opportunities for women to get promoted to higher management positions, which pay more, including kitchen experience, which was required in order to become a manager. There were other consequences of this lawsuit. In addition to paying the fines, Outback also had to begin issuing applications online for management positions so they won’t know whether they are male or female unless they can tell by the name on it. Also, they were required to hire a person in a new position within the HR division called the vice president of people. And a last requirement was that they had to hire an outside consultant to ensure that they were abiding by these rules listed above. Don’t get me wrong, I love Outback. I used to eat there about once a week and it seems like everytime I go, I see a female manager, no matter what location it is. But apparently this was something from behind the scenes that we as ordinary customers don’t get to see.
Tags: hr division, new position, recent article