US Tech Firm Fined Rs 32 Lakh For Posting ''Whites Only'' Job Ad

A Virginia-based IT services company has been fined $38,500 (Rs 32,11,177) for a job advertisement that sought only white, US-born applicants, BBC reported. The discriminatory advertisement was posted by Arthur Grand Technologies in March 2023 for a business analyst position on the hiring site. It asked in a bolded note for ''Only Born US Citizens [White] who are local within 60 miles from Dallas,'' according to a Justice Department news release. ''Don't share with candidates,'' the advertisement read in brackets.

The ad sparked outrage on social media and soon caught national attention, leading the Justice Department and the Department of Labor to launch an investigation. Arthur Grand is now required to pay $7,500 in civil penalties to the US treasury as well as $31,000 in total compensation to people who filed complaints over the incident.

The US Department of Justice announced the penalty, stating the ad violated federal civil rights and labour laws. 

In the settlement agreement, the company said the ad was ''generated by a disgruntled recruiter in India and was intended to embarrass the company,'' and that it never intended to dissuade non-citizens from applying.

The company has also promised to provide training for all company employees involved in recruiting, selecting candidates or tracking expressions of interest for open positions.

''It is shameful that in the 21st century, we continue to see employers using ‘whites only' and ‘only US-born' job postings to lock out otherwise eligible job candidates of colour. I share the public's outrage at Arthur Grand's appalling and discriminatory ban on job candidates based on citizenship status, national origin, colour and race,'' said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department's civil rights division in a statement.

In a statement to CNN, the company's CEO said it "vehemently denies any guilt or wrongdoing".

''This unauthorized posting was made by an upset employee on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) from their email address and account. Upon discovering this, we took immediate and decisive action to ensure that this type of incident will never happen again, including the immediate termination of the responsible employee,'' Sheik Rahmathullah said.