Instacart pays $5m to settle claims its PERM hiring shut out US workers

Instacart pays $5m to settle claims its PERM hiring shut out US workers

20 October 2026: The US Justice Department's Civil Rights Division and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission have reached a $5 million settlement with Maplebear Inc., which trades as Instacart, over claims that its recruitment for green-card sponsorships discriminated against US workers on citizenship status and national origin.

Not yet independently verified. The EEOC release is dated 20 October 2026 but gives no response from Instacart. The claims administrator's contact and any claims deadline had not been announced on that page when we read it. We will update this when it can be confirmed, and remove this note.

What the agencies found

Under the PERM programme, an employer that wants to sponsor a temporary visa holder for permanent residence must first run good-faith recruitment for US workers. The Justice Department's investigation found that Instacart required applications for positions advertised as part of PERM recruitment to be physically mailed, although its standard process accepted electronic applications, and the EEOC found similar evidence. As a result, the agencies say, many US workers who applied were not considered in time. They allege violations of the Immigration and Nationality Act and of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.

"This significant resolution marks the fifteenth settlement agreement the Civil Rights Division has reached under my leadership to protect U.S. workers," said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon. EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas said "when employers erect unlawful barriers that harm American workers, the EEOC will act decisively."

The terms

• A settlement fund of up to $4 million for applicants and deterred applicants affected between December 2023 and February 2026; a claims administrator will contact them and decide eligibility for back pay and compensatory damages.
• $1 million in civil penalties to the United States.
• PERM positions must be posted on Instacart's public careers site, and electronic applications accepted.
• Training on anti-discrimination duties, revised employment policies, and monitoring and reporting requirements.

Until the administrator sets up a contact, potential claimants are asked to email Instacart@eeoc.gov.

What it means for employers that sponsor

The agencies spell out the rule: during PERM recruitment an employer may not create extra burdens for US workers, publish adverts that disfavour or limit them, or use processes that classify applicants in a way that denies US workers jobs. The Justice Department says this is the fifteenth settlement since it relaunched its Protecting U.S. Workers Initiative in 2025, and the EEOC counts it as its fourth public settlement over anti-American national-origin discrimination since then, with five lawsuits pending. HR and immigration teams should check that every PERM advert is reachable through the same application channel as any other vacancy, including in the applicant tracking system. It follows the Labor Department's suspension of several large IT employers from PERM.

Sources

• EEOC: Civil Rights Division and EEOC secure $5,000,000 joint settlement with Instacart, 20 October 2026