CCP Pay Equity & Legal Compliance 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which factor does NOT constitute a permissible defense for pay differences between men and women?
- Seniority system
- Merit system
- Geographic location of the employer (Correct answer)
- Quantity or quality of production
Correct answer: Geographic location of the employer
Geographic location is not a statutory affirmative defense under the EPA; the four permissible defenses are seniority, merit, production-based pay, and any factor other than sex.
Question 2: A compensation analyst discovers that female software engineers earn 92 cents for every dollar earned by male peers in the same role. Which statistical method best isolates whether sex explains the gap after controlling for relevant variables?
- Compa-ratio analysis
- Multiple regression analysis (Correct answer)
- Quartile distribution review
- Pay range penetration analysis
Correct answer: Multiple regression analysis
Multiple regression analysis controls for legitimate factors (experience, performance, tenure) to reveal whether sex is a statistically significant predictor of pay.
Question 3: Which federal agency is primarily responsible for enforcing the Equal Pay Act?
- Department of Labor (DOL)
- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) (Correct answer)
- Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)
- National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)
Correct answer: Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
Enforcement of the EPA was transferred to the EEOC in 1979, making it the primary enforcement agency.
Question 4: A company's pay equity audit reveals that a protected class is concentrated in the lower quartiles of the pay range. This phenomenon is best described as:
- Structural pay compression
- Occupational segregation (Correct answer)
- Compa-ratio drift
- Pay grade misalignment
Correct answer: Occupational segregation
Occupational segregation describes the clustering of protected class members in lower-paid roles or pay range positions due to historical or systemic barriers.
Question 5: Under Executive Order 11246, federal contractors with 50 or more employees and contracts of at least $50,000 must:
- Submit annual pay equity reports to the EEOC
- Develop and maintain a written Affirmative Action Program (AAP) (Correct answer)
- Conduct annual third-party pay audits
- Disclose individual salaries to all employees
Correct answer: Develop and maintain a written Affirmative Action Program (AAP)
EO 11246 requires covered federal contractors to develop written AAPs addressing compensation, utilization, and placement goals.
Question 6: Which type of pay equity analysis compares compensation for jobs deemed of comparable worth to the organization, even if the jobs are dissimilar?
- Internal equity analysis
- Comparable worth analysis (Correct answer)
- Market benchmarking
- External equity audit
Correct answer: Comparable worth analysis
Comparable worth (or pay equity) analysis evaluates whether dissimilar jobs of similar value to the organization are compensated equitably, often revealing gender-based disparities.
Question 7: The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 primarily changed which aspect of pay discrimination law?
- It increased the penalties for EPA violations
- It reset the statute of limitations with each discriminatory paycheck (Correct answer)
- It extended EPA coverage to race and national origin
- It required employers to post pay scales publicly
Correct answer: It reset the statute of limitations with each discriminatory paycheck
The Lilly Ledbetter Act clarified that the 180/300-day filing period resets with each discriminatory paycheck, overturning the Ledbetter v. Goodyear Supreme Court ruling.
CCP Pay Equity & Legal Compliance 2
Under the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which factor does NOT constitute a permissible defense for pay differences between men and women?