Justina Jong’s shocking discovery that she was being paid less than a male colleague for the same job at Apple came from an unexpected source: an office printer. This revelation sparked a lawsuit alleging that Apple systematically paid thousands of women less than men. Jong, a training instructor in Apple’s marketing department, found a W-2 tax form on the printer belonging to her male colleague, revealing that he was earning nearly $10,000 more than her.
Apple, a company valued at $3.3 trillion in the stock market, has remained silent on the matter despite requests for comment. Jong, who has been with the company for over a decade, along with another long-time Apple employee, Amina Salgado, an AppleCare manager, filed a lawsuit in San Francisco County Superior Court against the tech giant. The lawsuit alleges that Apple underpaid more than 12,000 women in various departments including engineering, marketing, and AppleCare.
The legal action against Apple has once again brought attention to the gender pay disparities that exist in Silicon Valley’s male-dominated tech industry. This is not the first time a tech giant has faced such accusations. Google recently agreed to a $118 million settlement in a class-action lawsuit that claimed the company discriminated against female employees by paying them less, promoting them more slowly, and offering them lower-paying jobs compared to their male counterparts.
The lawsuit against Apple alleges that the company had a policy of asking potential hires about their previous pay, leading to offering women lower starting salaries than men for the same work. This practice has perpetuated the gender pay gap within the company, with women ending up earning less than men for similar roles. Despite being aware of the wage disparities, Apple failed to take corrective action to address the issue.
As a result of the lawsuit, Jong and Salgado are seeking class-action status and a court order for back pay, along with 10% interest, for the thousands of current and former female employees who have been affected by Apple’s discriminatory pay practices over the past four years. Additionally, the lawsuit aims to stop Apple from paying women less than men for the same job in the future.
With the implementation of a California law in 2018 that prohibits employers from inquiring about job applicants’ salary history, Apple shifted its approach to asking about salary expectations. However, research suggests that this change has not completely addressed the issue, as people’s salary expectations are typically influenced by their previous pay. This has resulted in women continuing to be paid less than men at Apple.
The lawsuit against Apple sheds light on the ongoing challenges faced by women in the tech industry regarding pay equality. It underscores the importance of holding companies accountable for their discriminatory practices and working towards creating a more equitable work environment for all employees.
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