Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Dell to pay $20M to settle discrimination claims

Dive Brief:

Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and Dell have agreed to pay a combined $20 million to settle three separate Department of Labor (DOL) discrimination claims, the agency announced.
Goldman Sachs would pay $9,995,000 in back pay and interest, under an agreement announced Monday by the DOL's Office of Federal Contractor Compliance Programs (OFCCP), to resolve alleged findings of gender- and race-based pay discrimination. Bank of America agreed Friday to pay $4.2 million in back wages and interest to resolve alleged hiring discrimination violations discovered during OFCCP compliance evaluations.
The employers issued separate statements via email to Industry Dive in response to the settlements. A Bank of America spokesperson said the company disagreed with OFCCP's allegations. A Goldman Sachs spokesperson said the company disagreed with the statistical analysis on which the agency based its allegations.

Dive Insight:

Each of the three companies mentioned in the recent settlements have been the subject of prior discrimination claims. Bank of America, for instance, has paid more than $210 million in disclosed settlement agreements to resolve discrimination claims since 2000, according to a report by advocacy group Good Jobs First. Bank of America's spokesperson told Industry Dive that OFCCP's review occurred between six and 10 years ago at a small number of offices: "We are confident that our hiring practices were appropriate and reflected Bank of America's demonstrated record of recruiting a diverse workforce."

Goldman Sachs faces an ongoing class-action suit brought by women employees alleging "systemic and pervasive discrimination." The company's spokesperson said it "remains committed to equal pay for all of its employees" and would "continue to focus on our initiatives to ensure the career progression of our diverse professionals."

Dell's settlement, announced Monday, would see the technology company pay a total of $7 million in lost wages, interest and benefits to resolve "indicators" of race- and gender-based pay discrimination, DOL said. The settlement includes more than $1.5 million in back pay and salary adjustments voluntarily paid by EMC Corporation in April 2012 prior to its merger with Dell.

Dell EMC agreed in 2018 to a $2.9 million settlement with OFCCP over alleged pay discrimination. A Dell spokesperson said Tuesday that the company "volunteered to work with the OFCCP toward a swift resolution of all open and pending matters," adding that its settlement agreement "demonstrates our commitment to equal pay and opportunity."

The settlements demonstrate OFCCP's commitment to enforcement of anti-discrimination provisions in U.S. federal contracts despite a prior observation by one source that the office is less likely to play "gotcha" with federal contractors. OFCCP has issued directives in recent years stating it would alter its approach toward audits. For example, one of the office's directives effectively said OFCCP would begin sharing preliminary findings of certain audits with contractors before issuing a notice of violation.

But OFCCP has continued to investigate discriminatory practices in cases involving companies like Oracle and Google under the Trump administration. Last month, the office reached a settlement of just under half a million dollars with uniform and facilities management company Cintas over alleged hiring discrimination.