Federal Contractor Agrees to Pay $599,989 in Back Wages to Settle Alleged Hiring Discrimination Found in U.S. Department of Labor Investigation

ATLANTA, GA – Performance Food Group Company – a federal contractor based in Richmond, Virginia – has agreed to pay $599,989 in back wages after compliance evaluations by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) found alleged systematic hiring discrimination violations at four facilities in Florence, South Carolina; Hickory, North Carolina; Batesville, Mississippi; and Lebanon, Tennessee.

OFCCP found that, beginning in 2015, Performance Food Group Company discriminated against 565 female applicants in the hiring and selection process for selector positions at the four warehouse locations. Additionally, OFCCP found Performance Food Group Company discriminated against 755 African American applicants in the hiring and selection process for selector positions in Florence, South Carolina. OFCCP also cited recordkeeping violations in Miami, Florida, and found Performance Food Group Company failed to take good-faith efforts to recruit women for selector positions in Miami and in Hickory, North Carolina.

Performance Food Group Company has agreed to pay the back wages and interest, as well as extend job offers to 64 affected class members. To ensure future compliance, the company is obligated to evaluate and revise its hiring and selection policies, develop job-related qualification standards and a selection process for selector positions, and examine and improve its personnel procedures and efforts to recruit qualified females and minorities.

"Employers should monitor their hiring process to ensure applicants are not rejected based on stereotypes or biases," said OFCCP Southeast Regional Director Samuel B. Maiden. "The Department will ensure employers comply with equal employment opportunity laws in its selection and hiring practices."

In addition to Executive Order 11246, OFCCP enforces Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974. These laws, as amended, make it illegal for contractors and subcontractors doing business with the federal government to discriminate in employment because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran. In addition, contractors and subcontractors are prohibited from discriminating against applicants or employees because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their compensation or the compensation of others subject to certain limitations. For more information, please call OFCCP's toll-free helpline at 800-397-6251 or visit https://www.dol.gov/ofccp/.