The city of Valparaiso is gearing up for a long legal battle with its human resources director. Kathy Lynn Gralik alleges that she was paid much less than male department heads, among other claims.
During Monday's city council meeting, City Attorney Patrick Lyp expressed confidence that there was no discrimination on the city's part, but said he didn't expect the lawsuit to be resolved quickly. "It's accurate that the city's IT director is paid more, but is that a valid comparison? Would you compare the city's building commissioner with the park director, or the city's police chief with the planning and transit director? I don't know," Lyp said.
He suggested that residents look at the city's internal investigation, HR department audit and city wage study referenced in the lawsuit for themselves before jumping to conclusions. Lyp stressed that city officials support the idea of equal pay and promised that the city would be as open and transparent as possible.
Still, Democratic city council candidate Barbara Domer felt the issue was unsettling from a taxpayer perspective and called on officials to do better. "According to the last census, females make up 52 percent of the city population, yet females make up only 29 percent of the director-level department heads," Domer said.
Lyp said the city will work with employment attorney Tina Bengs. The city's insurance carrier has agreed to cover the legal costs.
