Overview
Employers face pay equity challenges on multiple fronts. Employees, shareholders and customers are demanding more transparency and other proactive measures to address wage disparities. States are adopting ever more expansive equal pay laws that cover a significant portion of the U.S. workforce. The requirements for companies to report on their gender pay gap is growing in Europe. And the filing of lawsuits alleging discriminatory pay and promotion claims are expected to increase at unprecedented levels. Faegre Drinker has the requisite experience and resources to proactively manage pay equity risk. Our lawyers keep pace with evolving laws, judicial opinions and government enforcement actions. We partner with employers as a key strategic adviser to conduct robust risk assessments of potential vulnerability to administrative audits and potential class action discrimination claims. We also perform company-wide and targeted pay audits to understand and document legitimate factors for pay disparities, and fashion appropriate corrective and remedial measures when necessary. Because compliance is not a “one-and-done” exercise, we work with employers to update policies and documentation and implement appropriate training as part of a proactive approach to ensure equitable pay practices. We also vigorously defend government audits and pay equity claims, leveraging our deep litigation and class/collective action experience.