OpenAI and one of its subsidiaries will pay $3.2 million to settle allegations that they discriminated against U.S. workers by favoring foreign workers with temporary employment visas, the Justice Department announced Tuesday.
The Justice Department said the settlement resolves allegations that OpenAI and its subsidiary, Statsig Inc., violated the Immigration and Nationality Act through the Permanent Labor Certification (PERM) process by discouraging qualified U.S. workers from applying for certain jobs.
According to the Justice Department, OpenAI and Statsig, which develops product software, recruited foreign workers for some positions while taking steps that discouraged U.S. applicants.
According to the DOJ, OpenAI did not advertise positions it sought to fill through the PERM program on its job website, even though its standard practice was to do so with other jobs.
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Federal investigators alleged that OpenAI failed to advertise certain PERM positions on its careers website, required applicants to mail paper applications for those jobs while accepting electronic applications for other positions, and in some cases aired radio advertisements late at night, practices the Justice Department said discouraged U.S. workers from applying.
The settlement includes $1.2 million in civil penalties and $2 million to compensate alleged victims of discrimination. OpenAI also agreed to revise its employment policies, conduct training and submit to Justice Department monitoring.
OpenAI denied wrongdoing as part of the settlement agreement.
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“It is illegal to discriminate against U.S. workers by preferring temporary visa holders for jobs,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in a statement.
“This substantial settlement ensures that OpenAI redresses harm and changes its recruitment practices so that U.S. workers receive a fair opportunity for highly sought-after technology positions,” Dhillon added.
President Donald Trump has previously argued that many companies abuse temporary employment visa programs and has sought to limit the hiring of foreign workers, including by proposing a $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas for highly skilled workers. That proposal remains tied up in court.
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FOX Business has reached out to OpenAI for comment.
Reuters contributed to this report.
