take.”
She extended her hand and shook mine way too hard. I never understood what women who shook hands with the force of a man hoped to prove.
Girlie smiled big when I introduced her to Benjamin. “Is it okay if I call you Ben?”
“Sure.” Benjamin smiled back. His game face nowhere to be seen.
Girlie took one of the chairs in front of my desk and maneuvered it until she was partially facing Benjamin.
“The Center does great work. You help so many people in the community.” She was fixing her charms on Benjamin and he was eating it up. “What happened to your face?”
“Don’t you know?” I asked. If Big Buy was responsible for Benjamin’s injuries, I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that Girlie was somehow in the mix.
“Why would I know?”
I couldn’t gauge whether her puzzled look was sincere or not.
“I fell off my motorcycle,” Benjamin said uneasily.
“Sorry to hear that. You should be more careful next time. So where should we start?”
“You tell us,” I said. “You requested this meeting.”
“True.”
She pulled two sheets of paper from her briefcase. “Big Buy would like to avoid the unnecessary expenditure of legal fees and has authorized me to make a settlement offer.”
Liar, liar, pants on fire.
Her presence in my office had nothing to do with saving legal fees. Big Buy was running scared and it probably had something to do with those missing documents.
“If I had known that you wanted to discuss settlement, I would’ve had my clients here.”
“No need for that. This isn’t really a true settlement discussion since what we’re offering isn’t negotiable. I have authority to give both women three months’ salary, one-thousand dollars in outplacement assistance, and company-paid medical coverage for three months.”
“Three months’ salary?” A crude laugh masked my anger. “You’re joking, right?”
Girlie straightened in her seat. “Big Buy is making this offer in good faith.”
Bull.
“And why would my clients need outplacement assistance and medical coverage? They have jobs.”
“Our offer would require them to resign.”
Benjamin’s face flushed with agitation. He looked so perturbed I thought his yarmulke might shoot off the top of his head. “Resign for what? Complaining about being discriminated against?”
“Obviously, after litigation, it can be very difficult to restore the trust in the employer-employee relationship,” Girlie explained. “This is a great offer. We’d even be willing to convert the outplacement assistance to cash so they can use the money for tuition should they decide to go back to school. As you know, neither plaintiff has a college degree. That’s one of the reasons they haven’t been promoted.”
“More than a few of your highly paid male managers don’t have degrees either,” I pointed out.
“And who’s going to pay their household bills while they’re going to school without a job?” Benjamin added. “A grand wouldn’t even cover books.”
Girlie leaned back and crossed her legs. “They could go to school at night. Many community colleges in the area have night programs. They shouldn’t have trouble finding another job. Both of them have excellent retail experience.”
“They certainly do,” Benjamin snapped. “Which is why Big Buy should promote them using the same criteria it uses to promote men.”
Girlie formed a teepee with her fingers. “I’m not sure how much actual litigation you do, but—”
“I do enough.” Benjamin was now scowling at her.
“Pre-litigation settlement discussions aren’t generally used to argue the merits of the case,” Girlie said in a tone more appropriate for a first-grader. “This is merely an attempt to reach a speedy compromise.”
“If Big Buy wants to settle this case, three months’ salary isn’t even in the ballpark,” I said. “And since you said your offer isn’t negotiable, I guess this meeting is over.”
“Shouldn’t you present my
She extended her hand and shook mine way too hard. I never understood what women who shook hands with the force of a man hoped to prove.
Girlie smiled big when I introduced her to Benjamin. “Is it okay if I call you Ben?”
“Sure.” Benjamin smiled back. His game face nowhere to be seen.
Girlie took one of the chairs in front of my desk and maneuvered it until she was partially facing Benjamin.
“The Center does great work. You help so many people in the community.” She was fixing her charms on Benjamin and he was eating it up. “What happened to your face?”
“Don’t you know?” I asked. If Big Buy was responsible for Benjamin’s injuries, I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that Girlie was somehow in the mix.
“Why would I know?”
I couldn’t gauge whether her puzzled look was sincere or not.
“I fell off my motorcycle,” Benjamin said uneasily.
“Sorry to hear that. You should be more careful next time. So where should we start?”
“You tell us,” I said. “You requested this meeting.”
“True.”
She pulled two sheets of paper from her briefcase. “Big Buy would like to avoid the unnecessary expenditure of legal fees and has authorized me to make a settlement offer.”
Liar, liar, pants on fire.
Her presence in my office had nothing to do with saving legal fees. Big Buy was running scared and it probably had something to do with those missing documents.
“If I had known that you wanted to discuss settlement, I would’ve had my clients here.”
“No need for that. This isn’t really a true settlement discussion since what we’re offering isn’t negotiable. I have authority to give both women three months’ salary, one-thousand dollars in outplacement assistance, and company-paid medical coverage for three months.”
“Three months’ salary?” A crude laugh masked my anger. “You’re joking, right?”
Girlie straightened in her seat. “Big Buy is making this offer in good faith.”
Bull.
“And why would my clients need outplacement assistance and medical coverage? They have jobs.”
“Our offer would require them to resign.”
Benjamin’s face flushed with agitation. He looked so perturbed I thought his yarmulke might shoot off the top of his head. “Resign for what? Complaining about being discriminated against?”
“Obviously, after litigation, it can be very difficult to restore the trust in the employer-employee relationship,” Girlie explained. “This is a great offer. We’d even be willing to convert the outplacement assistance to cash so they can use the money for tuition should they decide to go back to school. As you know, neither plaintiff has a college degree. That’s one of the reasons they haven’t been promoted.”
“More than a few of your highly paid male managers don’t have degrees either,” I pointed out.
“And who’s going to pay their household bills while they’re going to school without a job?” Benjamin added. “A grand wouldn’t even cover books.”
Girlie leaned back and crossed her legs. “They could go to school at night. Many community colleges in the area have night programs. They shouldn’t have trouble finding another job. Both of them have excellent retail experience.”
“They certainly do,” Benjamin snapped. “Which is why Big Buy should promote them using the same criteria it uses to promote men.”
Girlie formed a teepee with her fingers. “I’m not sure how much actual litigation you do, but—”
“I do enough.” Benjamin was now scowling at her.
“Pre-litigation settlement discussions aren’t generally used to argue the merits of the case,” Girlie said in a tone more appropriate for a first-grader. “This is merely an attempt to reach a speedy compromise.”
“If Big Buy wants to settle this case, three months’ salary isn’t even in the ballpark,” I said. “And since you said your offer isn’t negotiable, I guess this meeting is over.”
“Shouldn’t you present my
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