Duling v. Gristede's

Outten & Golden secured a $1.45 million settlement for women who worked for Gristede’s supermarkets, and were allegedly steered into cashier and bookkeeper positions, while men were steered into clerk positions.

In this case, the named plaintiffs, Susan Duling, Margaret Anderson, and Lakeya Sewer, alleged violations of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the New York State Human Rights Law, and the New York City Human Rights Law. All three women worked as part-time cashiers at Gristede’s in Manhattan.

In 2010, a federal judge in the Southern District of New York granted class certification.

In doing so, the court held that the plaintiffs offered sufficient evidence that Gristede’s steered women into cashier positions, regardless of their qualifications or interests, and that Gristede’s promoted clerks, a position it primarily staffs with men, to managers.

The court also held that plaintiffs’ statistical evidence, suggesting that there was virtually zero probability that the significant disparities in assignment and promotion of men and women occurred by chance.

Gristede’s denied the allegations and subsequently settled the case for $1.45 million. The settlement funds were distributed to all women who worked for Gristede’s for at least 90 days in one or more of its stores in New York at any time between November 2, 2004 and November 15, 2012.