IBM has been hit with a federal civil rights complaint after James O'Keefe posted video leaked by an insider of CEO and Chairman Arvind Krishna outlining racist business practices.
"On December 11, 2023, a tape of IBM Chief Executive Officer and Board Chairman Arvind Krishna was released on X.4 In the video, Krishna promises to fire, demote, or deny bonuses to corporate executives who either fail to meet the corporation’s racial and national origin hiring quotas or who hire too many Asian individuals," reads a letter from America First Legal Foundation.
The letter references the below video of Krishna admitting to using coercion to fire people and reduce their bonuses if they don't discriminate in the hiring process.
"You got to move both forward by a percentage that leads to a plus on your bonus," Krishna said, referring to hiring hispanics. "and by the way if you lose, you lose part of your bonus."
He also said that "Asians are not an underrepresented minority in tech in America...I’m not going to finess this, for blacks we should try to get towards 13 percent."
Meanwhile IBM subsidiary chairman Paul Cormier of Red Hat says in the recording that they've terminated people unwilling to engage in racial discrimination.
As an aside, this comes as Krishna, a racist, was Reelected as a Class B Director of the New York Fed.
X owner Elon Musk said that the release was "Extremely concerning and obviously illegal," to which O'Keefe replied: "Elon, this was an insider at IBM who came to me with the CEO recording inspired by what you said telling both IBM and Disney to F off."
"Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits IBM from discriminating against an employee or an applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; to limit, segregate, or classify employees or applicants in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his status as an employee because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; or to discriminate against any individual because of his race, color, religion, sex, or national origin," reads the letter from America First.
O'Keefe encourages people fired from IBM or Red Hat in connection with this issue to contact him.
Read the full letter below:
December 12, 2023
Timothy Riera, Director (acting)
Jeffrey Burstein, Regional Attorney
New York District Office
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
33 Whitehall Street, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10004Investigation Request: International Business Machines Corporation (“IBM”)
Dear Mr. Riera and Mr. Burstein:
America First Legal Foundation (“AFL”) is a national nonprofit organization working to protect the rule of law, due process, and equal protection for all Americans. We write pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1601.6(a) seeking issuance of a Commissioner’s charge for an inquiry into individual or systemic discrimination by International Business Machines Corporation (“IBM”). IBM is a publicly traded corporation headquartered at 1 New Orchard Road, Armonk, NY 10504.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits IBM from discriminating against an employee or an applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; to limit, segregate, or classify employees or applicants in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his status as an employee because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; or to discriminate against any individual because of his race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in admission to or employment in any program established to provide apprenticeship or other training. However, the evidence is that IBM is knowingly, intentionally, and systematically engaging in such unlawful employment practices.
On December 11, 2023, a tape of IBM Chief Executive Officer and Board Chairman Arvind Krishna was released on X. In the video, Krishna promises to fire, demote, or deny bonuses to corporate executives who either fail to meet the corporation’s racial and national origin hiring quotas or who hire too many Asian individuals. Also, Paul Cormier, the chairman of IBM subsidiary Red Hat, admits employees who failed to meet or comply with the corporation’s unlawful racial and national origin quotas were terminated.
A Commissioner’s charge is particularly appropriate here because there is ample reason to believe that IBM has knowingly and intentionally violated federal law and intends to continue doing so. Krishna, Cormier, and others in management have embedded immoral and unlawful employment practices into the corporation’s culture. For example, IBM’s 2022 ESG report acknowledges that 'A modifier for diversity results is included in the annual incentive program for our executives globally and is based on improvement in executive representation for women globally and U.S. underrepresented minority (URM) groups (specifically Black and Hispanic) for our executives in the U.S.'
Discrimination based on immutable characteristics such as race, color, national origin, or sex 'generates a feeling of inferiority as to their status in the community that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely to ever be undone.' More broadly, IBM’s employment practices foment contention and resentment–they are 'odious and destructive.' It truly 'is a sordid business, this divvying us up' by race or sex.
Thank you in advance for your consideration. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
/s/ Gene P. Hamilton
Gene P. Hamilton
America First Legal Foundation"