KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A handful of female administrators have sued the Lee’s Summit R-7 School District, alleging that its pay scale discriminates against veteran employees based on their age and gender.
The lawsuit, filed earlier this month in Jackson County Circuit Court, was brought by five female employees of the district, including three elementary school principals and two assistant principals.
According to the lawsuit, men hired at Lee’s Summit elementary schools during the last four years received credit for prior work experience, placing them higher on the pay scale, whereas female employees did not receive the same credit for work experience.
“This policy of granting credit for all prior years of service teaching for new hires adversely impacts older employees and female employees resulting in significant pay disparity,” according to the lawsuit.
The five female employees filed grievances, which were investigated by the district’s legal counsel and not an outside firm, according to the lawsuit. The counsel “substantiated” the allegations that male elementary school principals were paid more than female principals with similar or more experience, but the district determined the differences in pay did not amount to a violation of policy, according to the suit.
The plaintiffs appealed the investigation to former Superintendent Dennis Carpenter, who “admitted there were pay disparities between men and women” but attributed the discrepancies to the fact that new hires could negotiate their pay while current employees could not, according to the lawsuit.
Carpenter also said that gender did not play a role in those decisions.
The district issued a statement Wednesday through a spokeswoman that said it does not comment on pending litigation: “(W)e look forward to addressing this case through the legal process.
Carpenter resigned after receiving threats from the community clashing with the school board over plans to bring equity training to the district. Ultimately, the school board signed off on the training.
Ealier this month, Megan Marshall became the first black woman ever elected to the Lee's Summit R-7 School Board. Marshall already vowed to be a voice for change in the district shortly after being sworn in.
