EQUAL PAY

Women—and women of color in particular—are systemically underpaid, underpromoted, and undervalued. Medina Orthwein LLP is committed to fighting for pay equity. We specialize in bringing individual and class action suits against major corporations (such as Daiichi and Novartis) for discriminating against their employees in pay and promotion. Our reputation has allowed us to negotiate class settlements without having to litigate. (See Pan v. Qualcomm – Felicia Medina won a $19.5 million settlement and comprehensive programmatic relief for 3,300 women who worked in STEM jobs at Qualcomm, without having to file a lawsuit in court.)

Our equal pay work is shaped by our understanding that pay discrimination is compounded for those who hold multiple marginalized identities. While the law may not fully recognize this, we know how to tell our clients’ stories of intersectional discrimination, we know how to uplift our clients’ voices and the voices of their communities, and we know how to advocate for our clients within a legal system that is stacked against them. In doing so, we have been at the forefront of leveraging California’s recently amended Equal Pay Act, which now protects employees against pay discrimination based on race, to hold companies accountable for discriminating against women of color.

Our equal pay works includes individual settlement negotiations, class settlement negotiations, and public lawsuits against major companies across various industries, including technology, pharmaceutical, media, transportation, and government employers. You can read about our litigation victories here and our ongoing equal pay work here.

If you believe that you are experiencing pay or promotion discrimination, contact us to see whether we can help.