Hanford contractor accused of underpaying women. It agrees to pay $450K in back wages
A Hanford nuclear reservation contractor has agreed to pay $450,000 in back wages and interest to 214 women employees to settle allegations of systematic, gender-based pay discrimination.
The U.S Department of Labor announced the agreement reached with CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Co. (CHPRC), a subsidiary of Jacobs, on Tuesday.
A Department of Labor review found that CHPRC paid female employees less than comparable males employed in several administrative and technical positions, according to the department.
CH2M admitted no wrongdoing, but agreed to what the Department of Labor called an “early resolution conciliation agreement.”
The agreements are designed to reduce the length of compliance evaluations with federal government contractors and reach efficient resolution of issues, according to the federal agency.
The Department of Labor is satisfied that CHPRC has addressed the issues found in its review, said Craig Leen, director of the department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, in a statement.
“Federal contractors must provide a level playing field for workers through equal employment opportunities,” said Jane Suhr, Pacific Region director of the Department of Labor office. “All employees deserve to be compensated equally regardless of their gender, and federal contractors must provide this opportunity through equal employment practices.”
CHPRC, which employs 1,658 people for Hanford site work, declined to comment on the settlement.
It has been the central Hanford site cleanup contractor for about 12 years. Its contract is expiring and a new contractor picked by the Department of Energy is taking over.
The transition to a team of Amentum with Fluor Federal Services and Atkins Nuclear Secured is expected to be completed Jan. 24.
The Hanford site in Eastern Washington is contaminated with radioactive and hazardous chemical waste after producing two-thirds of the nation’s weapons program plutonium from World War II through the Cold War. Environmental cleanup work is done by contractors hired by DOE.