EEOC Accuses Petco of Sex Discrimination

The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a sex discrimination suit against Petco Animal Supplies, accusing the San Diego-based retailer of paying women less than men to manage stores in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. The commission said it was also seeking damages for any other Petco employees who had suffered similar discrimination. In one instance, Katherine Bloom was assigned to manage a new store in the Alameda County community of Dublin in August 1995 after more than two years as a company manager. The district manager told her there was no money in the budget to raise her $27,300 salary, the EEOC said. She was transferred to another store seven months later, then replaced by a man who had no pet store experience and was paid $36,000, the EEOC said. Petco personnel executive Janet Mitchell said in a statement: “Managers’ salaries are based on breadth and scope of management experience and other business considerations. The company has a strong commitment to equal employment opportunity and does not discriminate against employees on any basis, including sex.”