The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a lawsuit against Cloudera, a California-based technology company, accusing it of discriminating against American workers in favor of hiring individuals with temporary employment visas for high-paying technology positions.
Allegations of Discriminatory Hiring Practices
The DOJ claims that Cloudera created a separate recruitment and hiring process designed to deter US workers from applying. The company allegedly did not consider American applicants for lucrative technology roles that were earmarked for people with temporary visas. Furthermore, the complaint states that Cloudera set up an email account that could not receive external emails, yet instructed applicants to use that unworkable address to apply for jobs.
An American worker who attempted to apply via the designated email account received a bounce-back notification, leading to a charge of employment discrimination being filed with the DOJ.
Details of the Lawsuit
The lawsuit, announced by the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, was filed with the Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer. It alleges that Cloudera violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) by intentionally discriminating against US workers during the permanent labor certification (PERM) process. The PERM program requires employers to recruit US workers in good faith before sponsoring foreign workers for permanent residency.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon stated, “Employers cannot use the PERM sponsorship process as a backdoor for discriminating against U.S. workers. The Division will not hesitate to sue companies who intentionally deter U.S. workers from applying to American jobs.”
Background on Cloudera
Cloudera is a data software company that was acquired by private equity firms KKR and Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in October 2021 for approximately $5.3 billion. It is no longer a publicly traded entity.
Protecting US Workers Initiative
This lawsuit is part of the DOJ’s Protecting US Workers Initiative, relaunched in 2025. Under this initiative, the division has already secured ten settlements in the past year, focusing on companies that illegally discriminate against US workers in favor of those with temporary employment visas.
