Brandon Hickman/E! Entertainment(LOS ANGELES) — Former E! News co-host Catt Sadler says she decided to leave the television network Tuesday after learning about “a massive disparity in pay” between herself and a “similarly situated male co-host,” whom she says was paid nearly double her salary for years.
Sadler, one of the network’s best-known personalities for more than a decade, said she first learned of the “alarming” disparity earlier this year, from a network executive.
“I learned that he wasn’t just making a little more than I was. In fact, he was making close to double my salary for the past several years,” Sadler said in a blog post Tuesday. “I have two decades experience in broadcasting and started at the network the very same year as my close friend and colleague that I adore.
“My team and I asked for what I know I deserve and were denied repeatedly,” she added.
Sadler, a single mother of two boys, called her decision to leave “scary.”
“[H]ow can I operate with integrity and stay on at E if they’re not willing to pay me the same as him? Or at least come close. … How can I remain silent when my rights under the law have been violated?” she asked.
Sadler, 43, had been with E! since 2005, once serving as co-host of the network’s flagship evening news program with Jason Kennedy — who was not named in her post — and more recently, as host of E!’s new two-hour live show Daily Pop “…which meant double duty,” Sadler noted. “Hosting a live, two-hour daytime show while also hosting E News most nights.”
In a statement, a company spokesperson said, “E! compensates employees fairly and appropriately based on their roles, regardless of gender,” adding of Sadler, “We…wish her all the best…”
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