Google Agrees to Pay $118M in Gender Pay Equity Settlement

Google believes its policies and practices are fair but agreed to pay $118 million to settle a class-action, gender-equity lawsuit, the company said in a statement Monday. Plaintiffs announced the settlement Friday, saying a settlement monitor will supervise over the next three years to ensure women aren’t paid less than male counterparts. The settlement covers 15,500 female employees in 236 positions in California since September 2013, said law firms Lieff Cabraser and Altshuler Berzon. “While we strongly believe in the equity of our policies and practices, after nearly five years of litigation, both sides agreed that resolution of the matter, without any admission or findings, was in the best interest of everyone,” Google said. “We are absolutely committed to paying, hiring and leveling all employees fairly and equally and for the past nine years we have run a rigorous pay equity analysis to make sure salaries, bonuses and equity awards are fair.” Plaintiff Holly Pease said: “As a woman who's spent her entire career in the tech industry, I'm optimistic that the actions Google has agreed to take as part of this settlement will ensure more equity for women.”