Former Portfolio Recovery VP Alleges Racial Discrimination in Lawsuit

A former executive of Portfolio Recovery Associates has sued the firm for racial discrimination, claiming that the debt buyer underpaid him because he is black and then fired him when he complained.

In the lawsuit filed in the United States District Court Eastern District of Virginia, former PRA vice president Mark Johnson alleged that he received “far less” compensation than other PRA executives with similar responsibilities who are white.

Johnson, who was an assistant vice president at the firm beginning in 2003 and subsequently promoted to vice president, received just under $275,000 in compensation in 2006, while another vice president with similar responsibilities received more than $900,000, according to the complaint, which added that Johnson helped bring “several million dollars” to the firm.

Johnson is seeking up to $4 million in damages.

According to the suit, Johnson was fired in April 2008, after Portfolio Recovery officials accused him of violating a "confidentiality agreement" by disclosing information to an attorney. Johnson contends the disclosure didn’t violate the agreement and the firing was due to questions about the pay discrepancy.

The suit is based on Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866. Similar claims already are available under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, but that statute imposes significant limits on damages and requires plaintiffs to submit their claims for review by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) before they may file suit, said Johnson’s attorney, Lisa Bertini, a partner with Bertini O’Donnell & Hammer PC in Norfolk, Va.

Johnson was one of only two African Americans out of more than 30 executives at the firm, Bertini added.

PRA’s law firm did not return phone calls. PRA has filed two separate motions to dismiss the suit, according to Bertini.