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Uncle Sam sues Oracle for 'screwing over Asian, black and women staff'

Big Red threatened with government IT contract armageddon over pay gap

Oracle could lose its lucrative US government IT contracts after the Department of Labor accused the tech giant of racial and gender discrimination.

The DoL has filed a lawsuit [PDF] with the US Office of Administrative Law Judges alleging that Oracle's pay grades violate the labor bod's rules against pay and employment discrimination by federal contractors.

According to the department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), Oracle pays its white male employees more than women and minority workers in the same positions and titles.

This after the OFCCP says it studied Oracle hiring and pay policies going back to 2013 across multiple levels and divisions within the company. That review claims that Oracle has been paying white males more than women and men who were African American and Asian.

"Specifically, OFCCP found gross disparities in pay even after controlling for job title, full-time status, exempt status, global career level, job speciality, estimated prior work experience, and company tenure," the complaint states.

Additionally, the DOL alleges Oracle had favored Asian males, particularly Indian men, when recruiting and hiring new workers. The OFCCP goes on to note that Oracle had not been cooperating with its efforts to investigate and had refused to hand over data and records requested by the investigators over the course of the two-year investigation.

Should Oracle be found to have violated labor laws, it stands to lose millions in government contract work. The DoL says that unless Oracle complies it will have existing deals cancelled and be banned from taking further work.

Oracle was quick to voice its objection to what it says is an act of political retribution. The company's co-CEO Safra Catz is an advisor to incoming US President Donald Trump.

"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," Oracle said in statement to El Reg.

"Our hiring and pay decisions are non-discriminatory and made based on legitimate business factors including experience and merit." ®

Bootnote

The DoL notes Oracle "designs, manufactures, and sells" hardware products. Someone tell that to Oracle, am I right?

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