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Capital One, Walmart settle with Justice Dept over citizens-only job postings

Reuters

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(Reuters) - Capital One Bank, Walmart Inc and two other companies have settled the U.S. Department of Justice's claims that job postings they made on college recruiting platforms discriminated against non-U.S. citizens.

DOJ on Wednesday said the companies would pay a total of $331,000 in penalties for posting job openings with unlawful citizenship status restrictions on platforms operated by Georgia Institute of Technology and other schools. The companies, which include used car retailer CarMax Inc and IT firm Axis Analytics Inc, all denied wrongdoing.

The federal Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) bars discrimination against non-citizens in hiring, firing and recruitment, including by conditioning jobs on citizenship or immigration status.

CarMax in a statement provided by a spokesperson denied engaging in discrimination and said it settled the claims to avoid prolonged litigation.

"Welcoming talented workers from diverse backgrounds and creating a sense of belonging for all of our associates is a top priority and key to our success," the Virginia-based company said.

The three other companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday.

Earlier this year, DOJ announced more than $800,000 in settlements of similar claims with 16 other companies including American Express Co, accounting firm KPMG LLC, and Edward Jones Investments. The companies denied wrongdoing.

The department on Wednesday said its investigation into job ads posted on college platforms began after a Georgia Tech student who was a lawful permanent resident filed a complaint against Capital One.

DOJ said it subsequently found discriminatory job postings by dozens of employers and is still investigating some of them. Georgia Tech and other schools were not accused of wrongdoing.

Under the settlements announced on Wednesday, CarMax will pay about $186,000, Axis and Capital One will pay roughly $50,000 each, and Walmart will pay $41,000, DOJ said. The fines depend on the number of allegedly unlawful posts made by each company.

The companies also agreed to train their recruiting staff on their obligations under immigration and anti-bias laws, and ensure their recruiting policies comply with the INA.

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