Sanofi Pays $15M To Settle Discrimination Suit
5 CommentsBy Ed Silverman // March 16th, 2010 // 7:06 am
After four years of squabbling, Sanofi-Aventis has agreed to pay $15.4 million to settle a class action lawsuit that accused the drugmaker of underpaying and underpromoting about 4,000 female sales reps in the US. The plaintiffs filed a motion in federal court in New York asking for preliminary approval of the deal on behalf of all US female sales reps. The deal comes shortly after Novartis lost a lawsuit filed by a rep who claimed discrimination over her pregnancy (see here).
The agreement includes base pay adjustments for current female employees to “ensure improved access to opportunities for advancement and equitable compensation,” and the value of the $2 million set aside for this purpose could reach nearly $10 million in total additional compensation over the next three years, according to court documents. Among other stipulations, Sanofi must conduct a pay equity analysis of its sales reps and make adjustments where disparities exist among genders.
The initial complaint was filed in March 2006, by Karen Bellifemine, a senior cardiovascular specialty sales rep, who brought a class charge of gender discrimination with the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The following year, she filed a class action discrimination lawsuit that was joined by four other female reps (back story here and this is the lawsuit).
Shirley
If they can make a massive payout to sales reps they can easily give a bigger payout to the women it has disfigured by their non discloure, because of the use of their drug Taxotere!
Annie
How much did the 4 women that were named in the suit get? This amount of money is not all that much when you consider what the attorny’s fees are and then the amount of women in the suit. Could it be aobut $3000 a piece?
Debbie
Shirley is right! She and I are permanently disfigured after chemo with their drug Taxotere for breast cancer treatment. No one told us we could be permanently disfigured. If we had a choice, there were other options.
Kathy
I too have been disfigured for almost four years after being treated with Taxotere, a product of Sanofi Aventis. These sales reps sought fair pay, and got it. I sought a treatment as a precaution for a cancer that was caught in time, and got disfigurement.
Bob
I’ve heard Sanofi has a long history of ruthless and horrible behavior towards its employees. This doesn’t surprise me.