Bottom Line – The U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) $3.2 million settlement with OpenAI highlights growing exposure for employers when a ‘green card’ recruitment process differs from ordinary recruitment practices. HR, talent acquisition, and global mobility teams should ensure that green card sponsored recruitment is conducted in essentially the same manner as comparable non-sponsored recruitment practices.

OpenAI Settles DOJ PERM Discrimination Allegations

In August 2026, DOJ announced a three-year settlement with OpenAI alleging that the Company discriminated against U.S. citizens, and other protected categories, during ‘green card’ permanent labor certification (“PERM”) recruitment.

DOJ claimed applicants for certain PERM positions had to apply by mail rather than the typical method – applying electronically through the Company’s external job website. OpenAI also did not post the positions on its external careers site and used other practices that DOJ claimed discouraged U.S. citizen applicants, such as late-night radio advertising.

OpenAI agreed to pay $1.2 million in civil penalties and create a $2 million back-pay fund. The Company also agreed to non-monetary relief, including public career-site postings with electronic applications, training, policy revisions, extended DOJ monitoring, and reporting.

Why This Settlement Matters

This case shows that a small number (10) of green card sponsored positions can generate multi-million dollar liability.

It is clear that DOJ examined how recruitment works in practice – whether U.S. citizens can easily locate job advertisements, apply through typical channels, enter the applicant tracking system, and receive a fair chance for consideration. Separate instructions, paper-only submissions, reduced visibility, or recruitment outside normal processes create an increasing risk of discrimination claims from DOJ.

Part of a Broader Enforcement Pattern

The settlement follows other recent DOJ challenges to PERM recruitment, including the ongoing lawsuit and suspension of Cloudera for alleged discrimination in April 2026. DOL's prompt PERM filing suspension following only DOJ allegations remains a stark reminder that immediate immigration sponsorship disruption is a real risk.

This recent settlement with OpenAI continues the trend of PERM discrimination settlements against name brand tech companies, including previous settlements of $25 million with Apple and $14 million with Facebook (Meta). These previous settlements focused on large numbers of positions, whereas OpenAI’s resulted from only 10 identified problematic positions.

Agencies are pursuing discrimination against U.S. citizens and permanent residents aggressively – and a smaller sponsorship program may not reduce the risk of enforcement action.

What Should Employers Do Now?

Coordination and alignment on PERM recruitment processes between legal, global mobility, and talent acquisition teams is critical.

Employers should act now to –

• Compare your PERM and standard recruitment, including posting location, applicant process, applicant tracking, screening, and documentation practices.
• Remove avoidable barriers that make sponsored positions harder for U.S. citizens to find or apply for.
• Consider a privileged audit of active and recent PERM matters before DOJ or another federal enforcement agency initiates an investigation.

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If you have questions about this Alert or need guidance regarding PERM recruitment, immigration sponsorship programs, or workplace immigration compliance, please contact the Silberman Law legal professional with whom you work, or simply reply to this Alert.