Apple faced a proposed class action on Thursday, as two long-term female employees filed a lawsuit in San Francisco state court, alleging that the tech giant pays over 12,000 women in California less than their male counterparts in similar roles. The legal action asserts that Apple has a systematic practice of underpaying female employees across its engineering, marketing, and AppleCare divisions.
According to the complaint, Apple determines employees’ starting pay based on their previous salaries or their “pay expectations,” leading to lower pay for women. Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that Apple’s performance evaluation system, used to determine raises and bonuses, is discriminatory against women. In response, Apple, headquartered in Cupertino, California, stated its dedication to inclusion and pay fairness.
Apple stated that since 2017, they have achieved and upheld gender pay equity, collaborating annually with an independent third-party expert to review each employee’s total compensation and make any necessary adjustments to uphold pay fairness. However, Eve Cervantez, the plaintiffs’ attorney, argued that Apple’s practices contribute to and exacerbate existing gender pay disparities. Cervantez emphasized that female employees at Apple are faced with a situation where they cannot win.
Repercussion of laying low on the employees
The plaintiffs in the case are being represented by class action law firms Outten & Golden, Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, and Altshuler Berzon. These firms have previously negotiated significant settlements in other cases involving gender bias, such as a $215 million agreement with Goldman Sachs last year and a $175 million settlement with Sterling Jewelers in 2022, despite denials of wrongdoing from those companies. Since 2018, California has banned employers from inquiring about job applicants’ salary history, aiming to eliminate pay disparities based on gender and race.
The lawsuit filed on Thursday alleges that Apple uses applicants’ salary expectations rather than their previous salaries to determine their pay. However, since most applicants tend to provide a slightly higher figure than their previous earnings, this practice effectively perpetuates wage gaps, according to the lawsuit. Additionally, the plaintiffs argue that Apple favors male employees in designating certain individuals as having “talent,” resulting in higher pay for those individuals.
The lawsuit alleges that Apple has violated California’s Equal Pay Act, which prohibits gender-based discrimination in pay, as well as state laws that prohibit workplace gender bias and unfair business practices. One of the plaintiffs, Justina Jong, further asserts that Apple declined to transfer her to another team following her complaint about sexual harassment by a colleague. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and penalties.