Story Published: Mar 11, 2010 at 7:06 PM PST
Story Updated: Mar 11, 2010 at 7:06 PM PST
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued the company four years ago in U.S. District Court in Seattle.
"The EEOC will continue to investigate employers and industries that have put women in certain types of jobs, and men in others," said Mike Baldonado, director of the agency's San Francisco district. "We hope Les Schwab becomes a model employer of women in the male-dominated tire industry."
Slightly more than 200 women - denied "sales and service" jobs in Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and Utah since 2004 - will be eligible for a share of the settlement, said EEOC regional attorney William R. Tamayo.
Les Schwab, headquartered in Bend, Ore., disputed lawsuit's allegations and succeeded in having some of the claims - that it failed to promote women to management and failed to provide them with training - dismissed.
The company did not admit guilt in the settlement but did agree to continue anti-discrimination training for employees and to try to hire women in proportion to their numbers within the applicant pool for vacant jobs.
The tire company has more than 400 stores and 7,000 employees, according to its Web site.
A company spokeswoman, Jodie Hueske, did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
