Professor suing the University of Texas School of Law files 116-page amended complaint extensively detailing claims of unequal pay, sex discrimination, and retaliation
AUSTIN, Texas, Sept. 27, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- On Friday, September 24, 2021, Law Professor Linda Mullenix filed a motion for leave to file her second amended complaint against the University of Texas at Austin. The lawsuit, which has been pending since December 2019, alleges that the University of Texas School of Law has engaged in Equal Pay Act violations, sex discrimination, and retaliation against Professor Mullenix.
The 116-page amended complaint goes into detail about the secretive budget committee process that recommends raises to Dean Farnsworth, as well as some of the special deals, housing allowances, and guaranteed salary increases some professors receive. For example, as described in the complaint, in 2018, the budget committee, without applying any uniform or objective criteria, voted to give about a third of the faculty, including nearly the entire budget committee itself, guaranteed raises of at least $10,000 for three years regardless of merit or performance. Moreover, the complaint alleges that Dean Farnsworth and the budget committee intentionally hid that information from the rest of the faculty because of potential "morale issues."
Regarding unequal pay, Professor Mullenix alleges that she has been paid over $237,000 less than a male colleague with a substantially similar teacher evaluation rating, but almost a decade less teaching experience, fewer than a third of Professor Mullenix's publication history, and fewer professional honors.
The complaint also alleges that Professor Mullenix has been retaliated against for speaking out about the unequal pay and discrimination she has both experienced and witnessed at the University. According to one colleague, "the way the system works at the [University of Texas School of Law] she will not get fair treatment." The complaint details how just nine days after Professor Mullenix expressed concerns about Equal Pay Act violations, Dean Farnsworth told her the only way she would receive equal pay was if she resigned in two years. The complaint also describes how Professor Mullenix has been retaliated against by being placed on do-nothing committees. According to multiple tenured faculty members, placing professors on do-nothing committees is a common way Dean Farnsworth retaliates against faculty he dislikes. It is further alleged that Dean Farnsworth also retaliates against women who raise equal pay concerns as a way to punish them and discourage others from coming forward. For example, the complaint details an instance where one female professor raised questions about why more women were not selected to receive raises that came from a university funded initiative, in response Dean Farnsworth gave her the lowest raise she had ever received and accused her of not being collegial. Another example of this behavior is when an associate dean made a formal complaint of unequal pay, Dean Farnsworth said she was paid less because she did not behave professionally with students. Similarly, even though Professor Mullenix is considered one of the leading scholars in her field, Dean Farnsworth calls her work mediocre and describes her as difficult and vain.
Professor Mullenix's lawsuit seeks to end this sex discrimination and retaliation at the University of Texas School of Law.
Professor Mullenix is represented by Colin Walsh and Jairo Castellanos of Wiley Walsh, P.C., as well as Paige Melendez of Rob Wiley P.C. Colin Walsh has been certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization as a specialist in labor and employment law.
Related Links
https://www.scribd.com/document/527773550/Plaintiff-s-Second-Amended-Complaint
https://www.wileywalsh.com
SOURCE Wiley Walsh, P.C.
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