Prior pay, alone or in combination with other factors, is not a job-related “factor other than sex” that can be used to justify a difference in pay under the Equal Pay Act (EPA), a majority of judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has held again. Rizo v. Yovino, No. 16-15372 (Feb. 27, 2020).

The Court previously reached this conclusion in 2018. On appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Supreme Court remanded the case because the authoring judge (Judge Stephen Reinhardt) passed away before publication of the opinion.

The new majority decision, authored by Judge Morgan Christen, reiterates, “Allowing employers to escape liability by relying on employees’ prior pay would defeat the purpose of the Act and perpetuate the very discrimination the EPA aims to eliminate.” Accordingly, the Court held, “[A]n employee’s prior pay cannot serve as an affirmative defense to a prima facie showing of an EPA violation.”

The Ninth Circuit has jurisdiction over Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.

Please find the full article on the Jackson Lewis Publications page here.