Post by carlita on Aug 10, 2005 11:01:49 GMT -5
from Yahoo! News:
'Mona Lisa' Producers Accused of Bias
By LARRY NEUMEISTER, Associated Press WriterTue Aug 9, 7:35 PM ET
Even as the movie "Mona Lisa Smile" explored stereotypes of female repression at a 1950s women's college, its producers discriminated against 19 female musicians who were paid less than their male counterparts, the U.S. government says.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced Tuesday that the producers — Revolution Studios and Smile Productions LLC — agreed to settle a lawsuit accusing them of paying their female musicians less than men for the same work.
The settlement, in which the producers did not admit wrongdoing, called for a payout of $3,500 to each of the female musicians, for a total of $66,500.
A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan said that the unlawful employment practices alleged by the EEOC were done "with malice or with reckless indifference to the federally protected rights" of the workers.
Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein approved the settlement Friday.
Stella N. Yamada, an EEOC trial attorney, said the case drew the agency's attention to the entertainment industry, where workers such as musicians might work just three days, as did the women who worked on the score for "Mona Lisa Smile."
"It is so ironic," Yamada said of the allegations involving a movie that focused on the ability of women to stand up for their rights.
"Musicians have a hard time knowing where to go," she said. "We're happy for the females who came forward."
Spencer H. Lewis Jr., director of the EEOC's New York office, said the agency would take strong action to protect victims of discrimination in the entertainment industry.
In the movie, actress Julia Roberts plays a free-spirited art teacher who confronts repression at a 1950s women's college, where students seem more interested in finding a husband and taking on outdated roles than in learning.
A message for comment left with a lawyer for the producers was not immediately returned.
'Mona Lisa' Producers Accused of Bias
By LARRY NEUMEISTER, Associated Press WriterTue Aug 9, 7:35 PM ET
Even as the movie "Mona Lisa Smile" explored stereotypes of female repression at a 1950s women's college, its producers discriminated against 19 female musicians who were paid less than their male counterparts, the U.S. government says.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced Tuesday that the producers — Revolution Studios and Smile Productions LLC — agreed to settle a lawsuit accusing them of paying their female musicians less than men for the same work.
The settlement, in which the producers did not admit wrongdoing, called for a payout of $3,500 to each of the female musicians, for a total of $66,500.
A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan said that the unlawful employment practices alleged by the EEOC were done "with malice or with reckless indifference to the federally protected rights" of the workers.
Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein approved the settlement Friday.
Stella N. Yamada, an EEOC trial attorney, said the case drew the agency's attention to the entertainment industry, where workers such as musicians might work just three days, as did the women who worked on the score for "Mona Lisa Smile."
"It is so ironic," Yamada said of the allegations involving a movie that focused on the ability of women to stand up for their rights.
"Musicians have a hard time knowing where to go," she said. "We're happy for the females who came forward."
Spencer H. Lewis Jr., director of the EEOC's New York office, said the agency would take strong action to protect victims of discrimination in the entertainment industry.
In the movie, actress Julia Roberts plays a free-spirited art teacher who confronts repression at a 1950s women's college, where students seem more interested in finding a husband and taking on outdated roles than in learning.
A message for comment left with a lawyer for the producers was not immediately returned.