20-Second Summary

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8^th Circuit recently ruled that the employer could not use a successful OFCCP audit that had reviewed and passed its compensation data as evidence to support that it had not discriminated against female employees who alleged they were paid less than males under the Equal Pay Act.  This ruling in the Dindinger v. Allsteel case did not help the employer trying to introduce the OFCCP audit results in this case.  

However, the case held that the introduction of the OFCCP audit would be too prejudicial to the jury, in part, “because it would suggest to the jury that an official fact-finding body had already decided whether Allsteel had violated the Equal Pay Act.”  If an OFCCP audit is too prejudicial to be allowed to come before the jury when the employer tries to introduce it, this same argument should apply if a plaintiff or a plaintiff class tries to use OFCCP findings against the employer.  This case provides an argument for any employers seeking to exclude unfavorable OFCCP audit findings  in discrimination lawsuits. 

To learn more, please contact Cheryl Behymer at (803) 255 0000 or cbehymer@fisherphillips.com or another attorney in Fisher Phillips’ Affirmative Action and Federal Contract Compliance Practice Group. 

The Fisher Phillips Affirmative Action and Federal Contract Compliance Practice Group knows that affirmative action is much more than just a numbers game. The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) regulates nearly all aspects of your employment practices, whether you currently have federal contracts or are trying to win your first one. Bidding on and entering into government contracts without knowledge of all of these requirements is a recipe for losing money. Our attorneys can help you understand, consider, and comply with the plethora of applicable laws to make sure you’re ready. https://www.fisherphillips.com/services-affirmative-action-and-federal-contract-compliance#Overview