OpenAI has agreed to pay $3.2 million to resolve allegations by the U.S. Justice Department that it engaged in discriminatory hiring practices against U.S. workers. The DOJ's civil rights division claimed that OpenAI, along with its subsidiary Statsig, preferred workers with temporary employment visas over U.S. applicants for jobs advertised through its immigration sponsorship program, specifically the Permanent Labor Certification (PERM) program.
The alleged discrimination involved OpenAI's failure to post job openings on its external career website and requiring applicants to mail paper applications for PERM-related positions, steps that the government argues discouraged U.S. workers from applying. In total, fewer than 10 positions were at issue. OpenAI will pay $1.2 million in civil penalties to the U.S. government and establish a $2 million back-pay fund to compensate victims of the alleged discrimination.
Despite disagreeing with the DOJ's findings, OpenAI settled to resolve the matter, stating that the PERM program is crucial for employees needing immigration support. As part of the settlement, OpenAI must now post all new PERM program jobs on its public career website, accept electronic applications, revise its employment policies, and train its personnel on anti-discrimination requirements. This settlement marks the 13th for the Justice Department since it relaunched its Protecting U.S. Workers Initiative in 2025.
