Google to pay $28M to settle racial, gender bias lawsuit
What's the story
Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet, has agreed to pay $28 million to settle a class-action lawsuit.
The suit accused the tech giant of racial bias, alleging that it disproportionately favored white and Asian employees.
It did so by giving them higher salaries and promoting them more frequently than their non-white counterparts.
The preliminary approval for this settlement was granted last week by Judge Charles Adams of the Santa Clara County Superior Court in California.
Settlement approval
Settlement deemed fair for affected employees
Describing the settlement as fair and reasonable, Judge Adams called it "a good result for the class."
This class consists of at least 6,632 Google employees in California, who worked there between February 15, 2018 and December 31, 2024.
A Google spokesperson confirmed the settlement but maintained that they disagree with the allegations of differential treatment toward any employee.
Case details
Lawsuit led by employee Ana Cantu
The lawsuit was filed by Ana Cantu, a Mexican and racially indigenous Google employee. She filed the claim on behalf of several minority groups in the company.
Cantu alleged that despite her exemplary work for seven years in Google's people operations and cloud departments, she stayed at the same job level as her white and Asian peers who received additional pay and promotions.
Discrimination claims
Allegations of unequal treatment and retaliation
Cantu alleged that Google assigned higher job "levels" to white and Asian employees for the same work and retaliated against those who complained by denying them raises and promotions.
She claimed these actions violated California's Equal Pay Act. Cantu left Google in September 2021, after her seven-year-long tenure at the company.
The net settlement amount is $20.4 million after deducting legal fees, penalties related to Cantu's claim under California's Private Attorneys General Act, and other costs.
Court proceedings
Final hearing for settlement approval scheduled
Judge Adams has set a hearing on September 11, to consider granting final approval of the settlement.
This case is titled Cantu v Google LLC et al, California Superior Court, Santa Clara County, No. 21CV392049.
The lawsuit and subsequent settlement shine a light on the persistent problem of racial bias and discrimination in giant corporations such as Google.