Judge approves $415M payout in Apple, Google anti-poaching suit

courtroom gavel

US District Judge Lucy Koh granted preliminary approval on Wednesday for a settlement between Apple, Google, Adobe, and Intel and their former employees. The payout is said to be worth around $415 million, and would effectively end the long-running anti-poaching lawsuit.

In 2010, employees of the tech firms launched a class action suit against the companies for alleged anti-competitive labor practices, claiming they conspired to avoid hiring each other’s workers in an effort to curtail salaries. They believe this cost them more than $3 billion in wages.

In August, the sides reached a settlement agreement worth $324 million, but Judge Koh rejected the proposal on the grounds that it was not enough to cover the 60,000+ employees included in the suit. But earlier this year, Apple and the others agreed to tack on an extra $90 million.

The payout will get final approval in June.

Source: ArsTechnica