Trending Now - Google Agrees to $50 Million Settlement in Discrimination Case

WHO:

ABC News - Black employees of Google, including April Curley, a former employee, and civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represented the plaintiffs.

WHAT:

ABC News - Google has agreed to a $50 million settlement in a racial discrimination lawsuit.

ABC News - The lawsuit alleged systemic racial disparities in hiring, pay, and advancement.

ABC News - The lawsuit received class action status and claimed that Google engaged in a “pattern and practice” of unfair treatment for its Black workers.

ABC News - The settlement includes commitments to pay equity analyses, pay transparency measures, and limits on mandatory arbitration for employment-related disputes through at least August 2026.

WHERE:

ABC News - The lawsuit was filed against Google, which is based in Mountain View, California.

WHEN:

ABC News - The lawsuit was filed in 2022.

ABC News - The settlement was announced in May 2025 and granted final approval recently.

WHY:

ABC News - The lawsuit claimed that Google viewed Black job candidates “through harmful racial stereotypes” and that hiring managers deemed Black candidates “not ‘Googly’ enough,” which was described as a dog whistle for race discrimination.

ABC News - The suit alleged that Black employees faced barriers that limited their opportunities in the tech industry.

HOW:

ABC News - The lawsuit claimed that Google steered Black employees into lower-level and lower-paid jobs and subjected them to a hostile work environment if they spoke out.

(UPDATED May 9, 2026 07:35 UTC)

Google has agreed to a $50 million settlement in a racial discrimination lawsuit that claimed systemic disparities in hiring, pay, and advancement for Black employees. The lawsuit, which received class action status, alleged that Google engaged in a “pattern and practice” of unfair treatment, viewing Black job candidates through harmful stereotypes and limiting their opportunities in the tech industry. As part of the settlement, Google will implement pay equity analyses, pay transparency measures, and limits on mandatory arbitration for employment-related disputes through at least August 2026.