Two women have filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple in California, accusing the tech giant of systematically underpaying female employees for the past four years. The lawsuit, representing potentially 12,000 current and former female employees, alleges Apple’s pay practices and performance evaluation system discriminate against women.
The lawsuit represents nearly 12,000 current and former female Apple employees
The core of the complaint centers around Apple’s past practice of basing starting salaries on previous salary history, a practice discontinued in late 2017. The lawsuit argues this approach perpetuated existing gender pay gaps, as women typically earn less than men in the tech industry.
The practice was replaced with a policy of asking job applicants for their salary expectations, which the lawsuit argues has a similar discriminatory effect. Studies have shown that employees tend to base their salary expectations on their current or past salaries, potentially leading to women undervaluing themselves during negotiations.
The lawsuit goes beyond pay disparity, alleging bias within Apple’s performance evaluation system. The complaint claims that subjective criteria, such as “teamwork” and “leadership,” are applied differently to men and women. According to the lawsuit, men are rewarded for behaviors that might be penalized for women, further impacting their earning potential.
The lawsuit seeks financial compensation for damages suffered by female employees due to alleged pay discrepancies. Additionally, the plaintiffs are requesting “declaratory relief,” a court order requiring Apple to change its pay and evaluation practices to ensure fairness. They are also asking for a jury trial to hear the case.
These accusations come on the heels of similar reports in 2022, where female Apple employees came forward alleging experiences of sexual harassment, bullying, and retaliation for filing complaints with HR. One particularly concerning example involved a former legal director who claims a colleague hacked her devices and issued death threats. Despite reporting the incident to HR, she alleges they failed to take action and ultimately terminated her employment.
With this lawsuit, Apple has a lot of pressure to address potential systemic gender bias within the company. Let’s see how the company finds its way through these legal proceedings.
(Via)
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