Google to pay $37 million to settle claims it favoured white and Asian employees
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A Google spokeswoman confirmed the settlement but said the firm still disagrees with the allegations that anyone was treated differently.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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CALIFORNIA - Google agreed to pay US$28 million (S$37 million) to settle a class-action lawsuit claiming that it favoured white and Asian employees by paying them more and putting them on higher career tracks than other workers.
The accord with Google, a unit of Alphabet, won preliminary approval last week from Judge Charles Adams from the Santa Clara County Superior Court in California.
He called the settlement fair, reasonable and “a good result for the class” of at least 6,632 Google employees in California between Feb 15, 2018, and Dec 31, 2024.
Google spokeswoman Courtenay Mencini confirmed the settlement on March 18 but said: “We continue to disagree with the allegations that we treated anyone differently, and remain committed to paying, hiring and levelling all employees fairly.”
The lawsuit was led by Ms Ana Cantu, who identifies as Mexican and racially indigenous, on behalf of Hispanic, Latinx, indigenous, Native American, American Indian, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander and Alaska Native employees at Google.
Ms Cantu said she performed exemplary work over seven years in Google’s people operations and cloud departments, yet languished at the same job level while white and Asian peers got extra pay and promotions.
She said the Mountain View, California-based company put white and Asian employees in higher job “levels” than other employees, even for the same work, and withheld raises and promotions from those who complained.
Ms Cantu said Google’s actions violated the California Equal Pay Act.
She left Google in September 2021.
Judge Adams said the settlement came after Ms Cantu’s lawyers agreed in March to exclude black employees from the proposed class, which Google had sought.
Net settlement proceeds total US$20.4 million, after deducting US$7 million for legal fees, penalties tied to Ms Cantu’s claim under California’s Private Attorneys General Act, and other costs.
Judge Adams scheduled a hearing on Sept 11 to consider final settlement approval. Ms Cantu’s lawyers did not immediately respond on March 18 to requests for comment. REUTERS
