When roughly half of the campus security monitors at School District 202 in Plainfield were laid off, 26 in total, two-thirds of those left jobless were women. And as Fox Chicago reported, district officials are not arguing this point; however, the firings may have violated a union agreement stating that layoffs must be done in accordance with seniority.
While Illinois Education Association representative Ann Bachman-Thomas pointed out the contractual seniority clause, calling the firings a simple case of sexism, District 202 spokesman Tom Hernandez simply acknowledged that gender indeed played a role in the layoffs.
The laid-off monitors filed a claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and have hired an Illinois employment lawyer for an eventual lawsuit. District officials declined to give an interview but shared the following prepared statement, which raised eyebrows among those who were let go:
"Because of the duties of the positions, which can be gender sensitive... we made this decision in the interest of the student and staff safety."
One laid-off monitor, Patti Mills, interpreted this to mean the district prefers having "big burly men" in security monitor positions. She also said nearly all of those laid off had more seniority and experience than nearly all of the men who kept their jobs.
Former Plainfield campus monitor Paul Tebo agrees with the women and said he believes the women were cut out of a perception that men are better able to do the job. But he said there is no reason why a man would be more qualified for the job than a woman.
He quit and found another job when he learned that layoffs were coming but said the he thought the manner in which it happened was "pretty unfair."
Tom Hernandez, meanwhile, defended the district's actions and said the law has "allowed gender to be considered as a legitimate occupational qualification."
Talk to a Chicago employment lawyer if you believe you have been unfairly discharged because of gender, race or national origin.
Related Resources:
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Discrimination Based on Gender (FindLaw)
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Browse Illinois Employment Lawyers (FindLaw)
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$152.5 Million Settlement in Novartis Gender Discrimination Suit (FindLaw's Decided Blog)
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