ATLANTA, GA - The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) slapped the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) with a $500,000 fine for advertising jobs only to U.S. citizens.
The elite university has to fork over half a million dollars in civil penalties for reportedly running a job recruitment platform that included postings that excluded non-citizens. According to the press release from the DOJ:
"The settlement resolves the department's determination that Georgia Tech violated the Immigration and Nationality ACT (INA) by operating a job recruiting platform on which third-party employers paid to post advertisements linked to its career fairs that unlawfully excluded certain non-U.S. citizens and limited recruitment opportunities for certain non-U.S. citizen students based on their citizenship status."
The DOJ began their investigation after a student at the university, who stated they were a lawful permanent resident, filed a discrimination complaint with the Civil Rights Division. According to the press release:
"The student alleged that a bank advertised a U.S. citizen-only internship on Georgia Tech's career services website. Upon investigating the student's complaint, the department uncovered additional unlawful discriminatory advertisements on Georgia Tech's job recruiting platform that discouraged or restricted certain non-U.S. citizen students from applying."
The DOJ added:
"The department's investigation also revealed that Georgia tech routinely permitted employers to block non-U.S. citizen students from applying to such jobs through its platform."
A total of $1.6 million fines were levied against 30 employers who advertised citizen-only jobs on the public university's recruiting platform. According to the press release:
"On June 16, 2022, the department settled with 16 employers; on Sept. 21. 2022, the department settled with four employers; and on May 23, 2023, the department settled with another 10 employers."
The DOJ added:
"Under the settlement agreement, Georgia Tech will pay a civil penalty of $500,000 to the United States, change its recruiting practices and revise its policies to promote compliance with the INA."
Additionally, the settlement states that for three years, the public university must "ensure that certain career services personnel" in its "undergraduate and graduate programs" are trained on the "INA's anti-discrimination provision."
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the DOJ's Civil Rights Division, said in a statement:
"Our nation's higher education institutions must ensure that their job recruiting platforms don't promote, facilitate or enable unlawful citizenship discrimination."
She added:
"The Justice Department will vigorously enforce the Immigration and Nationality Act's nondiscrimination mandate to ensure that college students are treated fairly and have an equal opportunity to compete for internships and jobs."
A representative from the campus Turning Point USA group called Georgia Tech's actions "hypocritical." The group representative said:
"Other schools have advocated black only spaces, dorms and graduations, but claim this kind of segregation is a good thing because it somehow protects black students."
The representative said that the university's "upper-level officials" who "undoubtedly support the loose immigration policies of the left, are treating legal foreign students, who just want a better education and a shot at a better life, like second class citizens." He added:
"A revival of American values in our institutes of higher education will not only benefit these non-U.S. citizen students, but America as a whole."
The elite university has to fork over half a million dollars in civil penalties for reportedly running a job recruitment platform that included postings that excluded non-citizens. According to the press release from the DOJ:
"The settlement resolves the department's determination that Georgia Tech violated the Immigration and Nationality ACT (INA) by operating a job recruiting platform on which third-party employers paid to post advertisements linked to its career fairs that unlawfully excluded certain non-U.S. citizens and limited recruitment opportunities for certain non-U.S. citizen students based on their citizenship status."
The DOJ began their investigation after a student at the university, who stated they were a lawful permanent resident, filed a discrimination complaint with the Civil Rights Division. According to the press release:
"The student alleged that a bank advertised a U.S. citizen-only internship on Georgia Tech's career services website. Upon investigating the student's complaint, the department uncovered additional unlawful discriminatory advertisements on Georgia Tech's job recruiting platform that discouraged or restricted certain non-U.S. citizen students from applying."
The DOJ added:
"The department's investigation also revealed that Georgia tech routinely permitted employers to block non-U.S. citizen students from applying to such jobs through its platform."
A total of $1.6 million fines were levied against 30 employers who advertised citizen-only jobs on the public university's recruiting platform. According to the press release:
"On June 16, 2022, the department settled with 16 employers; on Sept. 21. 2022, the department settled with four employers; and on May 23, 2023, the department settled with another 10 employers."
The DOJ added:
"Under the settlement agreement, Georgia Tech will pay a civil penalty of $500,000 to the United States, change its recruiting practices and revise its policies to promote compliance with the INA."
Additionally, the settlement states that for three years, the public university must "ensure that certain career services personnel" in its "undergraduate and graduate programs" are trained on the "INA's anti-discrimination provision."
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the DOJ's Civil Rights Division, said in a statement:
"Our nation's higher education institutions must ensure that their job recruiting platforms don't promote, facilitate or enable unlawful citizenship discrimination."
She added:
"The Justice Department will vigorously enforce the Immigration and Nationality Act's nondiscrimination mandate to ensure that college students are treated fairly and have an equal opportunity to compete for internships and jobs."
A representative from the campus Turning Point USA group called Georgia Tech's actions "hypocritical." The group representative said:
"Other schools have advocated black only spaces, dorms and graduations, but claim this kind of segregation is a good thing because it somehow protects black students."
The representative said that the university's "upper-level officials" who "undoubtedly support the loose immigration policies of the left, are treating legal foreign students, who just want a better education and a shot at a better life, like second class citizens." He added:
"A revival of American values in our institutes of higher education will not only benefit these non-U.S. citizen students, but America as a whole."
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