- Arthur Grand, a Virginia Tech service company, posted a job ad seeking only white, U.S.-born candidates.
- The Department of Justice determined that the ad violated the Immigration and Nationality Act.
- The company will now have to pay a $7,500 fine and undergo training to comply with federal law.
The U.S. Department of Justice has fined a Virginia-based technology company $7,500 for posting discriminatory job ads in March 2023 that only sought white candidates.
The Justice Department earlier this month awarded a contract to Arthur Grand Technologies, an information technology services company that is also required to provide comprehensive Immigration and Nationality Law training to its employees.
“U.S.-born citizens only,” the job ad said. [white] You live within 60 miles of Dallas, Texas.”
The ad went viral on social media and drew widespread criticism.
The Justice Department said the ads discouraged qualified individuals, including U.S. citizens born outside the United States and non-U.S. citizens, from applying.
An investigation by the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) found that recruiters at the company’s Indian subsidiary had posted job ads on Indeed.
Arthur Grand apologized and said an employee added the discriminatory language to the list and published it without permission.
“At Arthur Grand we do not tolerate or engage in any discrimination based on race, color or religion,” the company said on LinkedIn.
The company added: “After an investigation, we determined that the problematic job advertisements were handled by a newly hired, junior recruiter at our company. We took immediate action and terminated the recruiter for violating our company policies.”
The Department of Justice determined that the ads violated the Immigration and Nationality Act by excluding qualified candidates based on their citizenship status and nationality.
The Department of Labor also determined that the job advertisement violated Executive Order 11246, which prohibits federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin in employment decisions.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division called the case “shameful.”
As part of the settlement with the Department of Justice, Arthur Grand will pay a civil penalty of $7,500 to the U.S. Treasury and provide comprehensive training to its staff on compliance with the INA.
The settlement also requires the company to revise its employment policies, which will be subject to ongoing monitoring.
The agreement with the Department of Labor requires Arthur Grand to compensate individuals who file complaints with the OFCCP.
“We are committed to holding federal contractors accountable for egregious discriminatory practices like this one,” OFCCP Acting Director Michelle Hodge said, according to the Department of Justice.
Racial bias continues to play a role in hiring in the United States.
Last month, Business Insider reported on research showing that resumes with Black-sounding names are less likely to receive callbacks.
AI tools are becoming increasingly integrated into the hiring process and were initially touted as a way to reduce bias, but they are not immune to reflecting human racial biases.
Bloomberg reports that OpenAI’s ChatGPT overselected Asian female candidates and underselected black male candidates in a recent experiment.
OpenAI told Bloomberg that recruiters can add their own safeguards against bias, such as removing names from the selection process.
Arthur Grand did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.
