Employee of 25 years says all-male panel chose a man for desired position
By MARY ALLEN
Staff reporter
02/02/2003
A Maryland woman who has worked 25 years for the Delaware prison system has filed a lawsuit against the system and two of its leaders, claiming she was denied a promotion because she is a woman.
Colleen Shotzberger, 50, filed the U.S. District Court lawsuit in Wilmington against the Department of Correction, Commissioner Stan Taylor and Paul Howard, one of Taylor's advisers and chief of the bureau of state prisons.
Department spokeswoman Beth Welch, who spoke for the parties being sued, said state officials would not discuss the rationale for the hiring decision in Shotzberger's case. Welch said Shotzberger was one of four qualified people who were interviewed and considered.
"We believe we hired the best person for the job, regardless of gender," she said.
Shotzberger, of Millington, now works as a counselor supervisor for the prison system, according to the lawsuit. She sought a promotion in November 2001 to an administrative job overseeing the classification of all adult inmates. Classification involves planning for each individual's housing, medical and program needs, Welch said.
The lawsuit contends an all-male hiring panel gave the job to a male employee with five fewer years of Delaware prison work experience and less education.
Shotzberger temporarily held the job in question on two occasions and was given excellent performance reviews, according to the lawsuit. She maintains officials had decided the promotion would go to a man.
"High-ranking officials at the DOC are disproportionately male. The DOC has historically engaged in a pattern of discrimination against women concerning promotions to high-ranking positions," her attorneys Thomas S. Neuberger and Martin D. Haverly wrote in the lawsuit.
Neuberger said the hiring decision violated state merit rules, which required consideration of the candidates' qualifications, performance record and seniority. Shotzberger outranked the job winner on all counts, he said. Shotzberger could not be reached.
Shotzberger is seeking unspecified damages, including lost wages, and a court order that awards her the promotion. She also wants her personnel file cleared of any derogatory information relating to the promotion dispute.
Welch said two of Taylor's top three advisers are women. None of the six acting or current prison wardens are female, but women have held those jobs in the past. Two of five acting or deputy wardens are women, she said.
"We have a good record of promoting diversity in the workplace," Welch said.
But Neuberger wants to probe the hiring patterns further as the lawsuit progresses. "We'll be investigating statistically what's out there," he said.
Reach Mary Allen at 324-2794 or mallen@delawareonline.com.
