Catt Sadler Has Left E! News After Learning Her Cohost Jason Kennedy Makes Double Her Salary

After more than a decade with E!, Catt Sadler has parted ways with the network. The decision wasn't an easy one for Sadler, who calls her career with E! a "dream job."

“Up until this point, I mean it really has been a dream job. Literally a dream job. I’m from Indiana, born and raised, and I had my sights set on E! and I’ve seen the world. I’ve had the best experiences. I’ve gotten incredibly close with all of my coworkers. It’s like a family here and it’s been beautiful for the majority of my run. I pinch myself every day the job that I get to do. I have so much fun. It has almost been surreal,” she told People. “But then, this year happened.”

Sadler's role at the network has grown over the years. This year, she hosted Daily Pop, a daily live show, in addition to her nighttime duties hosting E! News. Around the time her contract came up for renewal, however, Sadler learned that "my male equivalent at the network [her cohost, Jason Kennedy] who I started with the same year and have come up with doing essentially similar jobs, if not the same job, wasn’t just making a little bit more than me but was making double my salary and has been for several years."

Armed with the knowledge that Kennedy earned twice as much as her for essentially the same job, Sadler's team went into negotiations seeking similar compensation. When they weren't able to reach an agreement, however, she made the difficult decision to walk away from the network.

"Not only did [E!] refuse to pay me as much as my male counterpart, but they didn’t come close—nowhere close, not even remotely close," she explained.

In a statement to People, an E! spokesperson said, "E! compensates employees fairly and appropriately based on their roles, regardless of gender. We appreciate Catt Sadler’s many contributions at E! News and wish her all the best following her decision to leave the network."

Sadler stressed that she doesn't blame Kennedy for the situation and says he's been a "champion" for her throughout the process. She does, however, take issue with the system as a whole, which continues to allow huge pay disparities between men and women in the workforce.

"The system’s the problem, the structure’s the problem," she said.