Two Women Sue Apple for Paying Female Employees Less Than Male Counterparts in the US

In a significant legal move, Apple Inc. is being sued by two female employees who allege systemic gender-based pay discrimination. 

The lawsuit claims that Apple consistently pays women less than their male counterparts for similar work, potentially affecting thousands of other women at the tech giant. 

The two plaintiffs, Justina Jong and Amina Salgado, are seeking to represent over 12,000 current and former female employees in Apple’s engineering, marketing, and AppleCare divisions in California.

The plaintiffs argue that Apple’s practices before 2018 perpetuated historical pay disparities between men and women by determining starting salaries based on an employee’s compensation history. 

Although California outlawed this practice in 2018, Apple then shifted to asking for salary expectations, which the plaintiffs claim entrenches the existing pay disparity. 

Joe Sellers, a lawyer at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC representing the employees, stated that Apple’s policies had a disparate impact on women and that the company failed to pay equal wages for substantially similar work.

The lawsuit also highlights disparities in performance reviews, where men at Apple reportedly receive higher scores in teamwork and leadership categories, leading to higher bonuses and overall pay. 

Jong discovered her pay disparity when she saw a male colleague’s W-2 form on the office printer, revealing she earned about $10,000 less for similar work.

Despite multiple complaints to Apple regarding the pay disparity, Salgado's salary was only adjusted after an independent third-party investigation confirmed the pay gap. 

However, she did not receive any back pay. 

Both women have worked at Apple for over a decade and claim that their experiences are not isolated incidents but part of a broader pattern of gender-based pay discrimination within the company.

The legal team representing Jong and Salgado has a history of handling similar cases against major tech companies. 

Previous lawsuits against Oracle Corp. and Google resulted in average per-person payouts of $3,750 and $5,500, respectively, after legal costs.

Apple has not yet responded to the lawsuit, which was filed in California state court. 

The case underscores ongoing concerns about gender pay disparities in the tech industry, which have led to substantial settlements in the past but often only result in modest compensation for the affected employees.

This lawsuit, reported initially by the Wall Street Journal, adds to the growing list of legal challenges tech companies face over gender pay equity. 

It remains to be seen how Apple will address these allegations and whether this case will prompt broader changes in the company’s compensation practices.