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Yes. Hiring software can reject qualified applicants, but one documented case does not show how often that happens across AI hiring tools or prove that every such tool is biased. In a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) case, iTutorGroup programmed its application software to reject women aged 55 or older and men aged 60 or older; the agency said more than 200 qualified U.S. applicants were rejected because of age. A 2023 settlement resolved the lawsuit. The case is a concrete warning about automated screening—not a measure of the error rate of hiring software generally.
What the iTutorGroup case establishes
In a May 5, 2022, announcement of a filed lawsuit, the EEOC alleged that iTutorGroup programmed its tutor application software in 2020 to automatically reject female applicants aged 55 or older and male applicants aged 60 or older. The agency said more than 200 qualified applicants in the United States were rejected because of age. Read the EEOC’s lawsuit announcement.
The EEOC announced on September 11, 2023, that iTutorGroup would pay $365,000 and provide other relief to settle the suit. The agency described monitoring and injunctive measures as part of the settlement. A settlement resolves the lawsuit; the 2022 announcement’s description of the allegations should not be mistaken for a finding that every hiring system works this way. See the EEOC’s settlement announcement.
The documented mechanism was a programmed age cutoff in application software. The EEOC did not describe that specific system as generative AI or identify it as a sophisticated machine-learning model. That distinction matters: “AI hiring tool” is often used broadly, while the underlying systems can perform different tasks and make decisions in different ways.
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What an expert’s warning means—and what it does not
A February 17, 2024, Futurism article by Sharon Adarlo reports Hilke Schellmann’s caution about evidence that hiring tools are free of bias or reliably identify the most qualified candidates. Schellmann is identified as an NYU journalism professor and author. Futurism reports her remarks from a BBC interview; because the interview itself is not linked here, the point is best treated as a reported expert assessment rather than a direct quotation. Read the Futurism report.
The warning is about what has been established, not proof that every vendor’s product discriminates. The iTutorGroup case demonstrates that an automated rule can exclude qualified people on a protected basis. It does not establish a representative rejection rate across employers or products, nor does it tell a job seeker whether a particular application was screened out by software.
Hiring software covers different tasks
It helps to ask what a system actually does rather than treat all hiring technology as one kind of “AI.” Depending on the product and its use, software may screen or filter applications, rank or prioritize candidates, administer assessments, or analyze interviews. A tool that prioritizes candidates is not necessarily making the same decision as one that automatically rejects an application. In the iTutorGroup case, the EEOC described software programmed to reject applicants at specified age cutoffs.
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Can employers use automated hiring systems?
In the United States, federal employment discrimination laws apply to software and automated systems used in employment decisions, according to EEOC materials. Using software does not transfer responsibility away from the employer. In the 2022 lawsuit announcement, then-EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows put it plainly: “Even when technology automates the discrimination, the employer is still responsible.”
The EEOC guidance addresses how employers can assess adverse impact in selection procedures under Title VII. The sources here concern U.S. federal law; they are not a complete account of state, local, or international requirements. Employers should check the rules that apply in each jurisdiction where they hire.
What employers should ask before relying on a tool
These are practical evaluation questions informed by EEOC guidance, not a claim that every jurisdiction requires the same procedure or guarantees the same applicant rights.
- What drives the result? Identify the job-related criteria and input data the system uses, and ask how those inputs connect to the role’s requirements.
- Does it reject or prioritize? Establish whether the tool automatically removes applicants from consideration, ranks them, or merely helps a person organize applications.
- How are outcomes monitored? Ask how the employer assesses whether the selection procedure has an adverse impact and what steps it takes when concerns arise.
- How are accommodations handled? Determine how an applicant can request an accommodation or an alternate assessment when a disability may affect the process.
- What records are kept? Retain enough information to explain, review, and monitor decisions rather than treating a software output as self-explanatory.
What job seekers can do
A rejected application alone usually does not reveal whether software was involved or why the employer made its decision. The sources cited here do not establish a universal right to human review or a guaranteed appeal route. If a disability may affect an assessment or interview-analysis process, read the application instructions and ask the employer about an accommodation or alternate assessment. Keep a copy of the instructions and any relevant communications.
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The EEOC case shows why scrutiny of automated selection matters, but it cannot answer whether a particular applicant was unfairly screened out. For that, the employer’s process and the facts of the individual application matter.
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