Search
The Employer Handbook Blog
Equal Pay, FLSA, and a $3.27M Verdict: Jury Sides with Fired Chief People Officer in Her Retaliation Case Against A Law Firm
You’d expect a company to listen when its Chief People Officer—especially one with nearly three decades of labor and employment law experience—raises concerns about compliance. Instead, this employer—a law firm—reassigned her shortly thereafter and fired her within the week of returning from bereavement leave. A jury just awarded her $3.27 million for retaliation.
TL;DR: A personal injury law firm hired a Chief People Officer with deep HR and employment law experience. Within her first month, she flagged potential equal pay and wage-and-hour violations. Shortly thereafter, she was demoted and then fired. After the court denied the employer’s motion for summary judgment in April 2025, a jury ruled in her favor—awarding $3.27 million in damages on her retaliation claims under Title VII, the Equal Pay Act, and the FLSA.
FACTS: Compliance warnings trigger a fast fall from the C-suite
The firm’s newly hired Chief People Officer—a labor and employment attorney with 27 years of experience—was brought on to build HR infrastructure and ensure legal compliance. She alleged that she:
- Observed a male attorney being offered $85,000—$20,000 more than a more experienced female attorney on the same team.
- Raised the concern internally, asking why the new hire would be paid more than a subordinate with greater tenure.
- Also questioned whether the CEO’s executive assistant was properly classified under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), as she frequently worked irregular hours and may have been owed overtime.
- Was told by the CEO that she was being “disloyal” and “not looking out for the firm,” and was reassigned from her executive role to an “intake specialist” position the next day.
- Was terminated within a week, allegedly for failing to complete a transition memo—though there was conflicting evidence about whether a deadline had ever been communicated.
She sued for retaliation. The employer moved for summary judgment. The court denied it, and the case proceeded to trial. Last week, the jury sided with the plaintiff.
THE LAW: Speaking up about pay equity and wage violations is protected activity—even in the HR seat
Under federal law:
- Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits retaliation against employees who complain about pay discrimination based on sex.
- The Equal Pay Act requires equal pay for equal work, regardless of gender.
- The FLSA protects employees who speak up—formally or informally—about potential wage-and-hour violations, including misclassification.
HOW THE COURT SAW IT: Timing, tone, and treatment all raise red flags
The employer argued that because she was the Chief People Officer, raising such issues was part of her job duties and not protected under federal anti-retaliation laws. The court disagreed, acknowledging that HR professionals are often responsible for compliance but emphasized that protected activity may still occur when those responsibilities involve advocating for others or pushing back on leadership decisions in a way that appears adverse to the employer.
Building on that conclusion, the court found the evidence compelling enough to proceed to trial: a demotion immediately following protected activity, the CEO’s comments questioning her loyalty, and a termination shortly thereafter. One quote in particular underscored the court’s concern:
“You’re disloyal. You’re just trying to set me up for a lawsuit. That’s what you do. You sue people… . You don’t have my best interest at heart.”
This statement, along with the rapid sequence of events, likely influenced the jury’s decision to find the termination retaliatory. The panel awarded her $3.27 million in damages.
WHY EMPLOYERS SHOULD PAY ATTENTION:
✅ Even executive-level HR leaders are protected from retaliation—especially when raising legal concerns that challenge leadership decisions. The court confirmed that compliance-related pushback from HR can constitute protected activity under Title VII, the Equal Pay Act, and the FLSA.
✅ Protected activity doesn’t require a formal process. Good-faith concerns raised in conversation or email can trigger legal protections.
✅ Adverse actions taken quickly after internal complaints are inherently risky. Demotion + firing + “disloyalty” rhetoric = classic retaliation scenario.
THE COMMON SENSE BOTTOM LINE:
If your HR leader flags pay equity or wage violations, resist the instinct to shut it down—or shut them out. Listen. Document. Investigate. And keep retaliation out of the equation. Otherwise, the person you hired to keep you out of legal trouble might be the one putting you in it.