Suit vs. EMC could get 500 plaintiffs

As a sex-discrimination lawsuit against EMC Corp. heads for a showdown in a Chicago courtroom, the Hopkinton company insists the case against it has no merit.

But a lawyer for two women who say they faced discrimination and sexual harassment at EMC's Chicago office tells a different story: "This is a case about a culture that is so hostile to women that they are driven out of the company in droves," said Shona Glink.

On Monday, a federal judge in Chicago will consider whether the case, filed in 2004, should be certified as a class-action lawsuit. If that happens, Glink said, about 500 current and former EMC employees may be entitled to sue for substantial damages.

EMC, with 33,000 employees worldwide, is the leading maker of heavy-duty data storage systems - complex machines that store vast amounts of information for large businesses and government agencies.

The plaintiffs, Tami Remien and Debra Fletcher, worked as saleswomen at EMC's Chicago office between 1999 and 2003. The lawsuit alleges they were subjected to relentless discrimination because they are women that eventually drove them from the company.

In a letter published on EMC's website, chief executive Joseph Tucci reacted to a Wall Street Journal story yesterday that publicized the charges, saying:

"These allegations largely focus on events claimed to have taken place up to a decade ago, and we believe they have no legal basis. More importantly, they bear no resemblance to the work environment and broad opportunities that have long existed for EMC employees around the world."

According to the suit, Remien was denied a potentially lucrative Motorola Inc. account because "she would not smoke, drink, swear, hunt, fish, and tolerate strip clubs." Remien was consigned to less-profitable Motorola accounts. But in September 2002, when she complained to EMC's human resources department about discrimination, she was removed from the Motorola account entirely and given only "dead end" sales assignments, the suit says.

The suit also states that, in 2001, Fletcher was not given proper compensation for a major sale she helped to make. Fletcher was told to assign credit for the sale to a male colleague because "he has a family to feed."

Fletcher's co-workers allegedly harassed her with suggestive comments and phone calls suggesting that she had sexual liaisons with EMC customers in order to close business deals. The suit also says that Fletcher, like Remien, was denied opportunities to work on the more lucrative accounts.

Linda Connly, EMC's vice president of strategic alliances, echoed Tucci's defense of the company.

"I've looked at my career, and I've had opportunities that many of my male counterparts have not had," said Connly, who joined the company in 2000 when EMC acquired her former employer, Data General Inc. Connly, who moved through a series of national and global sales and marketing jobs, said she was encouraged to interview for a vice president's slot.

Not long after getting her current job in 2005, Connly was diagnosed with breast cancer. She said the company has stood by her in her illness. "One of the reasons I'm so passionate about my feelings about EMC is how well the company supported me through that process," she said.

EMC spokesman Mark Fredrickson said that during the period covered by the lawsuit, saleswomen at the company earned about 5 percent more, on average, than their male counterparts. He added that EMC has longstanding policies against sexual harassment and discrimination and has become more aggressive in recent years in its efforts to hire a more diverse sales force.

But Glink said there's ample evidence of widespread discrimination against female EMC employees. She said her research found that women make up about 40 percent of the sales force at most high-technology companies, but EMC has acknowledged only about 13 percent of its salespeople are female.

About 30 current or former EMC employees have petitioned to have the lawsuit certified as a class action. Glink commissioned a study by a University of Pennsylvania professor which concludes that between 1998 and 2004 EMC saleswomen were much less likely to receive promotions than men and much more likely to resign.

" 'We like aggressive white males.' That is the message that is sent, over and over again," Glink said.

Hiawatha Bray can be reached at bray@globe.com.