Complaint Filed Against Facebook for Gender Discrimination

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) submitted last Tuesday a complaint against Facebook to the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), alleging that the social media giant’s platform allows advertisers to target job ads based on gender.  

The complaint says that 10 different companies had used Facebook’s targeting system to show ads for positions such as mechanic, roofer, and security engineer to men aged 25 to 35 near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A related investigation by ProPublica had discovered a similar pattern for Uber’s jobs ads.

Galen Sherwin, from the ACLU’s Women’s Rights Project says that the practice is illegal and prevent women from breaking into men-dominated fields. Meanwhile, Facebook spokesperson Joe Osborne says that they are reviewing the complaint and will be defending the companies practices, reiterating that there was no room for discrimination on the platform.  

Source: BBC