The tech giant Apple has agreed to pay $25 million due to discriminatory hiring practices.

The court case alleged that Apple preferred hiring people on a temporary work visa over U.S. citizens.

The Justice Department showed how Apple did not advertise certain positions internally or externally to U.S. citizens.

The Hill shares more on the story:

Apple has agreed to pay $25 million to settle claims that it discriminated against U.S. citizens and permanent residents in hiring for certain positions, the Justice Department announced Thursday.

The tech giant allegedly engaged in “a pattern or practice of citizenship status discrimination” in recruiting for positions through the permanent labor certification (PERM) program, which allows employers to sponsor workers for permanent resident status.

According to the Justice Department, Apple did not advertise positions that it sought to hire through the PERM program on its external job website and required candidates to mail in paper applications, often resulting in fewer or no submissions by those who would not be eligible for the program.

“Creating unlawful barriers that make it harder for someone to seek a job because of their citizenship status will not be tolerated,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said in a statement.

More from Fortune:

Apple required job seekers to apply via paper mail and didn’t allow electronic submission, as it does for other openings, according to the department. That made it harder for people outside the PERM program to get hired, the department said.

The PERM program is designed to let companies sponsor foreign workers for permanent resident status, but it stipulates that employers can’t show a bias against applicants who may be citizens or already have permission to work in the US.

Apple’s approach “nearly always resulted in few or no applications to PERM positions” from those kinds of candidates, according to the department. The $25 million payment includes $18.25 million in back pay for those discriminated against and $6.75 million in fines.

“Creating unlawful barriers that make it harder for someone to seek a job because of their citizenship status will not be tolerated,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the department’s Civil Rights Division.

It’s disgusting seeing a company that started in America turn its back on its people.

I hope that this lawsuit makes an example for other companies.

 

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