Female DEA agents will receive a settlement, three decades after filing a sex discrimination case

A group of former special agents at the Justice Department’s Drug Enforcement Administration will soon receive a settlement from a sex discrimination case, three decades after its original filing. The $12 million settlement, which the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission finalized on July 22, will go to 71 agents who filed claims in the class-action lawsuit. The case centered on a systemic discrimination practice at DEA, which denied qualified female special agents overseas positions, a type of experience that led to faster promotions and frequently went to male agents.