Overview
Cohen Milstein represented a certified class of 180 current and former female officers in the Northeast Region of Willis Group Holdings Ltd., a global insurance and reinsurance brokerage firm, in this high-profile pay and promotion gender discrimination class action.
On November 19, 2007, Judge Gerard E. Lynch of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York granted final approval to an $8.5 million settlement, roughly $50,000 for each class member, and amount covering 100% of the lost wages Plaintiffs claimed. The court made a separate award of attorneys’ fees. The settlement was reached in June 2007, weeks before a jury trial was scheduled to start.
In addition to financial compensation, the settlement required Willis’s compensation practices to be overseen by an independent monitor. Furthermore, the consent decree required Willis to revise its employee performance appraisal system and to allow the monitor to inspect its compensation practices.
Case Background
Originally filed in July 2001, female officers, including assistant vice presidents, vice presidents and senior vice presidents, claimed that Willis Group Holdings Ltd., a global insurance and reinsurance brokerage firm, systemically denied them promotional opportunities and equal compensation in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 from November 1998 through 2001.
Subsequently, a second class action was filed on behalf of female officers at Willis covering 2002 – 2007, which settled for an additional $11.5 million, inclusive of fees.
The female officers alleged that discrimination in their terms and conditions of employment was the standard operating procedure at Willis. They further claimed that these practices permeated the company’s culture and had the purposeful effect of denying promotional opportunities, creating a glass ceiling for women at the company. Moreover, they asserted women were denied equal compensation.
Plaintiffs noted that an internal diversity committee found evidence of such gender pay and promotion discrimination in the late 1990s. However, despite the confirmation that a glass ceiling existed, the diversity committee was disbanded. No actions were adopted or undertaken to remedy the discrimination.