According to the Equal Pay Act, employers are permitted to pay males and females different wages under a limited set of circumstances. What about differences in national origin, however? Are there legitimate reasons that a company can use to pay individuals differently based on their national origin? Winner Ford of Cherry Hill and Winner Ford evidently thought so. They employed Chinese and non-Chinese emergency and accessory installation (EAI) technicians. The company paid the Chinese EAI technicians as much as $3 per hour less than it paid the non-Chinese technicians. The dealerships are part of Chas. S. Winner Inc. The company is a large automotive dealership based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. The dealership offers direct sales and leasing of cars and trucks, fleet management services, police responder vehicles, delivery vehicles, and more. The technicians performed the same work, regardless of national origin. Some of the non-Chinese workers had less experience than the Chinese technicians, and others had no experience. Because of the pay disparity, one of the Chinese EAIs complained. The company responded by reprimanding him for complaining and suggested that he could lose his job if he sought legal advice. The EEOC brought charges against the company in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey when attempts at conciliation were not successful. The court ordered the company to pay $150,000 in lost wages and damages to the members of the class action lawsuit.

Explain what type of discrimination occurred and what Winner Ford needed to do to defend their actions successfully.