Oracle Sued: Lawsuit From Department of Labor Says Company Has Discriminatory Hiring Practices

The United States Department of Labor announced on Wednesday it is suing technology company Oracle for discriminatory employment practices.

The suit alleges Oracle has a “systematic practice” of paying white male workers more than their counterparts with the same job title, resulting in pay discrimination against female, black and Asian employees.

The Department of Labor also accused Oracle of favoring Asian workers in its recruiting and hiring process—especially for product development and other technical roles—and discriminating against non-Asian applicants.

The suit is being brought against Oracle because of its role as a federal contractor, designing, manufacturing and selling software and hardware products to the U.S. government. Because of its role as a federal contractor, it is subject to comply with certain federal rules and regulations, including being restricted from using any discriminatory hiring practices.

A compliance review by the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) started in 2014 found Oracle to be in violation of those rules. The company refused to comply with requests for employment data and records, including prior-year compensation data for all employees, complete hiring data for certain business lines and employee complaints of discrimination.

“Federal contractors are required to comply with all applicable anti-discrimination laws,” OFCCP Acting Director Thomas M. Dowd said in a statement. “We filed this lawsuit to enforce those requirements.”

The suit could cost Oracle millions of dollars in government contracts. The company earned nearly $19 million from government work in 2016 and has made more than $786 million in contract work since the start of the Barack Obama administration, according to U.S. spending data.

If Oracle is found guilty of wrongdoing in its hiring practices, it could see all current government contracts cancelled and may be banned from receiving future contracts from the federal government.

Oracle has denied the claims, issuing the following statement through a spokesperson :

“The complaint is politically motivated, based on false allegations, and wholly without merit. Oracle values diversity and inclusion, and is a responsible equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. Our hiring and pay decisions are non-discriminatory and made based on legitimate business factors including experience and merit.”

Oracle CEO Safra Catz was announced as a member of Donald Trump’s presidential transition team in December 2016. Catz was also one of a number of tech company executives who visited with the President-Elect at Trump Tower.