YSU to pay ex-employee $675K in settlement

By Harold Gwin

The former general counsel alleged gender discrimination and retaliation.

YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown State University is paying $675,000 to settle a federal lawsuit filed against it by its former general counsel.

The suit was filed by Atty. Sandra L. Denman in 2005, alleging gender discrimination and retaliation by the university. Denman served as YSU’s general counsel and assistant to the president from March 1994 until June 30, 2004, when she was reassigned to the position of director of environmental and occupational health, a non-attorney job with a lower pay scale.

The case was set for trial in June before U.S. District Judge Peter C. Economus, but the two sides reached a settlement agreement.

That agreement results in YSU’s paying Denman $675,000, with $366,341 going to her and $308,658 going to her legal counsel, Thorman & Hardin-Levine Co. of Cleveland.

YSU said in a prepared statement that it will pay $145,000 of the total, with the rest coming from its liability insurance carrier. The $145,000 represents the deductible amount on the insurance policy, the statement said.

The university said it settled the case based on the recommendations of its legal counsel and insurance carrier.

Neither Denman nor her attorney could be reached to comment.

Denman, who left YSU in June 2007, said in her suit that the university refused to renew her contract as legal counsel and moved her into a lower-paying position after she challenged what she believed to be the “pattern and practice” of YSU to pay its female employees at a rate lower than their male counterparts.

The university uses federal funds to help pay employee salaries, and the alleged discrimination is a violation of federal equal pay rights law, she argued.

The suit said the retaliation came after she brought the issue to the attention of university officials.

YSU maintains that its actions concerning Denman’s employment were legally defensible and in the best interest of the university, and that there was no discrimination or retaliation.

“Considering the costs and the uncertain outcome of a lengthy trial, the university agrees that it is in the best interest of both the university and its insurance carrier to settle this matter at this time,” YSU’s statement said.

The settlement stipulates that YSU is making no admission of any liability for unlawful or wrongful conduct of any kind in signing the agreement.

The settlement results in the dismissal of Denman’s lawsuit and her release of the university from any claims she has made or might make related to her employment at YSU, her separation from that employment and any other claims she might have against YSU.

She also agrees to never again apply for employment at YSU or any related entity.

gwin@vindy.com