OpenAI and the Justice Department’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section have settled a case involving allegations that OpenAI discriminated against U.S. workers in recruitment tied to the permanent labor certification process. The settlement requires OpenAI to pay $1.2 million, establish a $2 million back-pay fund, and revise its PERM recruiting practices.
The PERM program allows employers to sponsor workers for permanent resident status if they cannot find qualified U.S. workers after conducting good-faith recruitment. DOJ alleged that OpenAI required U.S. workers applying for some PERM-related jobs to apply by mail rather than through the electronic systems used for other openings.
DOJ focused on access to the application process rather than an alleged preference for one group of workers over another. DOJ’s concern was that U.S. workers did not have the same practical opportunity to find and apply for PERM-related jobs as other applicants. The agreement signals that DOJ may scrutinize PERM recruiting practices that force U.S. workers to use different or more burdensome application steps, especially when those steps are not required by Labor Department rules.
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