Bulletins

Facebook to pay $14 million for alleged bias against US workers

The Justice Department alleged Facebook reserved certain jobs for temporary visa holders instead of U.S. citizens, permanent residents and others.

An open passport with stamps

Facebook settled charges it discriminated against U.S. workers.

Image : ConvertKit/Protocol

Facebook will pay up to $14.25 million to settle allegations it "routinely refused to recruit, consider or hire U.S. workers" for certain positions, the U.S. Justice Department announced on Tuesday.

The money includes a $4.75 million fine and up to $9.5 million for alleged victims of the discrimination against "U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, asylees, refugees and lawful permanent residents," the department said. The fine and award are both records for this type of enforcement.

The U.S. had originally sued Facebook, alleging the company "used recruiting methods designed to deter U.S. workers from applying to certain positions" and "reserved jobs for temporary visa holders" as part of a process that required certifying that qualified U.S. workers weren't available and interested in the positions.

Facebook, which also made other commitments such as advertising jobs more broadly, also settled with the Labor Department.

Ben Brody

Ben Brody (@ BenBrodyDC) is a senior reporter at Protocol focusing on how Congress, courts and agencies affect the online world we live in. He formerly covered tech policy and lobbying (including antitrust, Section 230 and privacy) at Bloomberg News, where he previously reported on the influence industry, government ethics and the 2016 presidential election. Before that, Ben covered business news at CNNMoney and AdAge, and all manner of stories in and around New York. He still loves appearing on the New York news radio he grew up with.

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