Business Gender bias suit filed against Quest Diagnostics

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) -- Female sales representatives for Quest Diagnostics filed a $100 million federal lawsuit last Thursday against the diagnostic testing company, accusing it of gender discrimination. The suit was brought in U.S. District Court in Newark by sales managers Erin Beery in Indianapolis and Heather Traeger in Bradenton, Fla., two employees of the company's AmeriPath division. They are seeking to have the court extend the lawsuit to other female sales representatives who have been employed by Madison, N.J.-based Quest Diagnostics Inc. since Feb. 17, 2010. Beery and Traeger allege a wide range of discriminatory practices by the Fortune 500 company. They said Quest had failed to correct discriminatory policies, practices and procedures that have an illegal, disparate impact on women. The lawsuit claims that high-ranking company officials and a male-dominated upper management fosters an "old boys' club" environment that forces women to work under less favorable circumstances than men and denies them equal advancement opportunities. Plaintiff Attorney Sharon Eubanks said there is a clear pattern of male employees and women without primary child care responsibilities advancing more rapidly and to higher-paying jobs at Quest. In addition to seeking class-action status, both plaintiffs filed individual claims of disparate pay, differential treatment, gender hostility and retaliation in the workplace, among other allegations. Published: Mon, Jan 16, 2012