Overview
- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit Friday in federal court accusing the University of Texas Medical Branch of violating the Equal Pay Act by paying a female solutions architect less than a male colleague.
- The complaint says Maria Alza started the role at about $112,750 while outside hire Henry Dominguez began at $125,000 and that both performed essentially identical work for the same period.
- Federal filings say Alza held the job’s listed technology degree and later completed a relevant master’s while UTMB kept Dominguez’s higher pay after a 2024 internal compensation review that did not raise her salary.
- The EEOC says it sought to resolve the dispute through conciliation before suing and is asking the court for back pay, liquidated damages, and orders requiring UTMB to eliminate the disparity and change pay practices.
- UTMB has not issued a substantive public response, a pretrial conference is scheduled for October 14, 2026, and the case highlights how Equal Pay Act enforcement can lead to both individual recovery and institutional policy changes.