Google Agrees To Pay $118M To Settle Lawsuit Filed By Female Employees

Alphabet Inc's GOOGL Google has agreed to settle a gender discrimination lawsuit covering close to 15,500 female employees by paying $118 million. 

Law firms Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP and Altshuler Berzon LLP announced the settlement on Friday, adding that an independent expert will further analyze Google's hiring practices. 

An independent labor economist will also review the company's pay equity studies.

According to the law firms, the Google settlement involves women in 236 different positions at the company.

"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," Holly Pease, one of the plaintiffs, said in the statement.

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The law firms added that a judge must approve the Google deal. A hearing on a preliminary approval is scheduled for June 21.

Regarding the hearing, plaintiffs' co-counsel Jim Finberg said, "Google has long been a technology leader. We are delighted that this Settlement Agreement and Order Google is also affirming its commitment to be a leader in ensuring pay equity and equal employment opportunity for all its employees." 

The plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit are Pease, Kelly Ellis, Kelli Wisuri, and Heidi Lamar. All the plaintiffs are women who have worked for Google in California since September 14, 2013.

Photo: Ben Nuttall on flickr