OpenAI settles claims of discrimination against US workers for $3.2 million
OpenAI will pay $3.2 million to settle claims that it favored foreign workers on temporary visas over U.S. citizens in its hiring processes, the Justice Department announced on Tuesday. The artificial…
OpenAI will pay $3.2 million to settle claims that it favored foreign workers on temporary visas over U.S. citizens in its hiring processes, the Justice Department announced on Tuesday.
The artificial intelligence company recruited and hired foreign workers to certain positions without advertising the opportunities on its external job website, a DOJ investigation found.
OpenAI and a subsidiary, Statsig Inc., also took other unusual steps to discourage some U.S. applicants, such as advertising late at night and requiring job seekers to submit paper applications rather than electronic, the Justice Department said.
Immigration laws allow U.S. employers to sponsor workers for permanent resident status if they cannot find qualified U.S. workers, but only after a thorough recruitment process.
employers to sponsor workers for permanent resident status if they cannot find qualified U.
Under the settlement, the company will pay $1.2 million in civil penalties and create a $2 million back-pay fund to compensate “victims of the companies’ discriminatory practices.” It must also change hiring practices and policies, train personnel on immigration law, and be subject to monitoring and reporting requirements.
DOJ did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A spokesperson for OpenAI said that the company needs to recruit globally to fulfill its mission of ensuring that artificial general intelligence “benefits all of humanity.”
“While we disagree with the DOJ’s findings, we reached this agreement to resolve the matter and move forward with our PERM program, which is critical for employees and candidates requiring immigration support,” the spokesperson said.
The Justice Department’s investigation concerned “fewer than ten” positions, but said it pursued the settlement because the “amount reflects the harm to U.S. workers when they are shut out of applying for lucrative technology jobs.”
The agreement with OpenAI marks the 13th settlement DOJ reached since relaunching a program in 2025 to enforce citizenship status discrimination.
