DOJ Secures $5 Million Settlement With Instacart Over Alleged Discrimination Against U.S. Workers

The U.S. Department of Justice and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced on October 20 that they have secured a $5 million settlement with Maplebear Inc., the company that operates the grocery delivery service Instacart, over allegations that its hiring practices discriminated against American workers in favor of temporary visa holders.

According to the Justice Department, investigators found evidence that Instacart manipulated the Permanent Labor Certification (PERM) process between December 2023 and February 2026 by requiring U.S. applicants for certain positions to submit applications by physical mail, while its standard recruitment process accepted electronic applications. The agencies alleged that this extra burden disadvantaged qualified American workers and let the company pursue foreign workers seeking permanent residency, in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Under the agreement, Instacart will pay $1 million in civil penalties and make up to $4 million available to people who applied for covered jobs during the period — including those investigators say may have been discouraged from applying at all. The company also agreed to post jobs open to foreign workers on its public website, accept electronic applications from American workers, revise its recruitment policies, and submit to monitoring and reporting. A claims administrator will be appointed to contact potentially eligible claimants.

"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, adding that the department would keep holding companies that prefer temporary visa holders accountable.

The PERM program allows employers to sponsor foreign workers for permanent residency, but federal law requires them to first make a good-faith effort to recruit qualified American workers. Federal officials framed the settlement as part of a broader enforcement push — the division's Protecting U.S. Workers Initiative — aimed at companies that use the program to sidestep domestic hiring. The company has not admitted wrongdoing, as is typical in such settlements, and the claims process for affected applicants will determine how the $4 million fund is distributed in the coming months.