THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, October 18, 1994 TAG: 9410180345
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Short : 48 lines
Virginia Power has agreed to provide salary adjustments and back pay totaling nearly $27,000 to a white woman and a black man whose cases came to light in a U.S. Labor Department review, the government said Monday.
The review was part of a regular examination of federal contractors and subcontractors required to provide equal employment opportunities regardless of race, sex, religion, national origin, disability or veteran status.
Neither of the two supervisors filed a complaint against Virginia Power, and neither the company nor the Labor Department would identify them.
The agreement includes two years of back pay, with interest, of $3,881 and an annual salary adjustment of $1,797 for a white female supervisor and two years of back pay of $16,477 and an annual salary adjustment of $4,834 for a black male supervisor.
``We are always looking for ways we can fine-tune our programs to provide additional opportunities for women and minorities and we view this process as another such opportunity,'' Virginia Power spokesman Bill Byrd said.
``We don't believe we have done anything wrong, even in the case of the two employees. There were market reasons for the salaries. The settlement is mutually acceptable and we consider this matter closed.''
Joseph DuBray, regional director of the Labor Department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance in Philadelphia, said such agreements make people aware of ``glass ceilings'' that prevent many women or minorities from moving into management or leadership positions.
The glass ceiling refers to limits placed on women or minorities to prevent them from rising above a certain level in a company.
``It's an attitudinal barrier,'' said Kate Dugan, a spokeswoman for the Labor Department.
At the utility's downtown Richmond site, where the review was conducted, 13 percent of the supervisors are women and 11 percent are minorities, Byrd said.
Byrd said the Labor Department commended the utility for its support of community activities designed to assist women and minorities. by CNB