The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and LinkedIn Corporation have agreed to resolve allegations of systemic, gender-based pay discrimination for $1.8 million in back wages and interest and various forms of injunctive relief. According to the press release the agency issued on Tuesday, the settlement impacts 686 women employed at the professional networking services website and mobile app operator at its San Francisco and Sunnyvale, Calif., locations.
According to the DOL, LinkedIn failed to comply with an executive order entitled Equal Employment Opportunity, prohibiting businesses who do more than $10,000 worth of government business per year from “discriminating in employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin.” The order dates to the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson and has roots in the civil rights movement.
An investigation by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) found that from Mar. 1, 2015 through Mar. 1, 2017, the employer “did not provide equal pay to the affected female workers in positions in its Engineering and Marketing job family groups in San Francisco, and its Engineering and Product job family groups in Sunnyvale.”
Pursuant to the agreement, LinkedIn has committed to paying back wages and interest to affected workers, conducting staff training to ensure compliance with equality imperatives, and for the next three years, evaluating whether the company’s compensation is gender neutral and adjusting accordingly. Reportedly, the company will also alter its compensation policies and practices as well as its monitoring and reporting obligations to ensure compliance with federal law.
