Tech workers ask appeals court to reject Apple, Google bid

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 14 (Reuters) - Employees suing Apple, Google and two other tech companies over hiring practices said an appeals court should not approve a $324.5 million settlement in the case, according to a court filing on Tuesday.

Plaintiff workers accused Apple, Google, Intel and Adobe in a 2011 lawsuit of conspiring to avoid poaching each other's employees. The companies agreed to a $324.5 million settlement earlier this year.

U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California rejected the proposed class action settlement in September, saying the amount was too low. The companies appealed, saying she committed "clear legal error."

In the filing on Tuesday, the workers said that although they believed the $324.5 million deal originally warranted approval, the judge had the proper authority to reject it and they would "defer to (Koh's) sound judgment about how best to oversee this litigation."