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DE&I

America First Legal may not have won a DE&I “victory” against American Airlines

The Department of Labor did not indicate that the airline had engaged in any illegal hiring practices.
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Sergey Kustov, American Airlines Boeing 777-200ER Kustov, CC BY-SA 3.0

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“Victory.” That’s how America First Legal (AFL), a conservative non-profit, began a Dec. 17 press release claiming an airline had ditched its alleged “discriminatory hiring practices” following a complaint AFL filed against the company. However, the fine print suggests this may not be the whole story.

AFL filed a complaint with the EEOC in Nov. 2023, claiming American Airlines (and other airlines) had discriminatory hiring practices that supposedly favored women and people of color, Bloomberg reported.

The Department of Labor (DOL) issued a letter on Dec. 13, outlining the resolution to AFL’s complaint. While the non-profit claimed that American Airlines will “end illegal hiring discrimination,” the DOL did not indicate that the airline will change any policies or that it engaged in any illegal hiring practices.

Instead, the letter said that American Airlines “understands” that they cannot engage in hiring quotas, and that placement goals are simply a benchmark and shouldn’t “be interpreted as a ceiling or floor for the employment of a particular group of persons.” It also said that the airline will make necessary changes “if” it has any problem areas with hiring. The DOL did not say that American Airlines had been found to have any current DE&I policies that needed to change.

AFL has recently claimed similar inaccurate victories following complaints against United Airlines and Southwest Airlines as well, according to the industry blog View from the Wing. However, neither the airlines nor the DOL have said that DE&I policies will change or that any alleged wrongdoing had occurred.

The letter from the Department of Labor that America First Legal shared publicly

America First Legal

HR Brew reached out to AFL to clarify which policies American Airlines will supposedly change. The organization directed us back to the letter.

American Airlines declined to comment on this story.

Quick-to-read HR news & insights

From recruiting and retention to company culture and the latest in HR tech, HR Brew delivers up-to-date industry news and tips to help HR pros stay nimble in today’s fast-changing business environment.