Virginia Tech Firm Fined for Discriminatory Job Posting

A Virginia-based company, Arthur Grand Technologies Inc., has agreed to pay a $7,500 civil penalty following a discriminatory job posting that drew the attention of the Department of Justice (DOJ). The incident began in March 2023 when the IT services firm posted an advertisement for a business analyst position that included discriminatory language. The ad specified that only “US Born Citizens [white]” located within 60 miles of Dallas, Texas, should apply, and it instructed to “not share with candidates.”

The Department of Labor’s agreement also involves Arthur Grand Technologies compensating individuals who filed complaints with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). Michele Hodge, acting director of the OFCCP, emphasized that companies engaged in federal contracts must not engage in discriminatory hiring practices, underscoring the seriousness of the offense.

Arthur Grand Technologies, headquartered in Ashburn, Virginia, responded by denying any intentional wrongdoing. The company claimed that the unauthorized job posting was made by a disgruntled employee on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) who used their account and email address to publish the ad. “Upon discovering this, we took immediate and decisive action to ensure that this type of incident will never happen again, including the immediate termination of the responsible employee,” the company said in a statement.

This posting quickly prompted investigations from both the Department of Labor’s OFCCP in April 2023 and the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) in May 2023. The investigations focused on potential violations of civil rights laws, particularly the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

On Thursday, the Justice Department announced that Arthur Grand Technologies had reached separate agreements with both the DOJ and the Labor Department. The agreement with the DOJ addresses the company’s violation of the INA due to the discriminatory job advertisement. As part of the settlement, Arthur Grand Technologies will be required to train its staff on the INA’s requirements, revise its employment policies, and undergo departmental monitoring to ensure compliance.

Despite these agreements, Arthur Grand Technologies maintains its stance of innocence, asserting that the settlements do not equate to an admission of guilt. The company, which identifies as minority-owned, expressed regret for the incident and reaffirmed its commitment to making meaningful changes to uphold the trust and confidence of its community and stakeholders.