Bank of America has paid the largest amount of disclosed discrimination penalties, with $210 million in settlements since 2000, followed by Coca-Cola, Novartis , Morgan Stanley and Abercrombie & Fitch. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Virtually all of the Fortune 500 companies and other major employers have paid for claims of employment discrimination or harassment since 2000—with banks and retailers disclosing the most penalties, according to the Good Jobs First report, “Big Business Bias-Employment Discrimination and Sexual Harassment at Large Corporations.”
While most of the lawsuits ended in confidential settlements, Good Jobs First was able to examine cases with disclosed verdicts or settlements, and found that 189 Fortune 500 companies have paid $1.9 billion in penalties. Of those, $356 million in 238 cases were resolved by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, $65 million in 85 cases were handled by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, and $1.5 billion involved 176 private lawsuits.
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Katie Kuehner-Hebert
Katie Kuehner-Hebert is a freelance writer based in Running Springs, Calif. She has more than three decades of journalism experience, with particular expertise in employee benefits and other human resource topics.
