The basic complaints in the suit are so common as to not really be newsworthy. Mary Sidney, COO of San Jose State University’s foundation, filed suit recently that she is underpaid vs. her white male peers who hold similar jobs. Here is the line, though, that caught me attention:
The foundation’s board of directors failed to ensure that Sidney was properly compensated, according to Sidney’s complaint.
Wow! Throw away all those “you get what you negotiate books”, there is already someone else out there that has the legal responsibility to make sure you are paid enough. Think of all the hardship I put my family through, moving them to new cities so I could take new jobs with better pay — it was all wasted effort. I should have been able to stay in one place and let my bosses take responsibility for making sure I was paid enough. (Becky Bartindale, “Suit claims salary bias” San Jose Mercury News, 2/16)
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Actually, if they are at all typical in their pay of their “Chief _____ Officer” positions, she’s absolutely right. The board DID fail to ensure that she (and all the others) was “properly” compensated… primarily by paying them at least ten times more than they are worth.