US tech giant Google has agreed to pay $118 million to settle a class-action lawsuit over discrimination against women. This was announced by two law firms that defend the women.
Former Google employees filed a complaint with the San Francisco District Court in 2017. They complained, among other things, that Google pays women less than men in similar positions and that they are placed on lower pay scales than their male colleagues with the same qualifications and experience.
The deal covers some 15,500 female employees who have worked for Google in California since September 2013, say law firms Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein and Altshuler Berzon. As part of the agreement, Google will also have its recruitment and compensation practices analyzed by an independent party.
A Google spokesperson confirmed that there is an agreement that does not include an admission of guilt. “We are committed to paying and hiring all our employees fairly and equitably,” the spokesperson said.
The settlement has yet to be approved by a judge.
The company already agreed to pay the US Department of Labor $3.8 million in 2021 after a series of allegations of discrimination against women and Asian workers.
