According to documents and sources, attorneys and analysts from the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing have interviewed numerous Black women who worked at Alphabet Inc. (Google’s parent company), about their experiences. To protect the work, the sources spoke anonymously.
According to emails, questions have focused on workplace harassment and discrimination. One source said that conversations took place as recently last month.
The DFEH declined comment.
Google stated that it is committed to “building sustainable equity for its Black workers” and that 2020 was the largest year it had for hiring “Black+” workers. This designation includes people of multiple races.
It stated that its goal was to make Google a welcoming workplace for all employees. “We will continue to work on this important task and investigate all concerns to ensure that our workplace is fair and representative.”
According to people, the DFEH interviewed workers who had filed formal complaints as well as those who hadn’t. This showed that the regulator was looking for more instances of possible mistreatment.
The agency is currently involved in lawsuits against Tencent Holdings’ Riot Games, Activision Blizzard Inc. and Activision Games. These lawsuits allege widespread discrimination as well as harassment.
However, not all cases result in charges.
Black men working in tech have claimed that they have been subject to disparaging comments and discouragement over the years. They have been shut out of offices by security guards and coworkers who questioned if they were actually there.
These complaints have grown as more Black women join the workforce. Seven former and current employees of Google spoke out to Reuters about their experiences with being treated differently by colleagues from different backgrounds and being marginalized in projects.
NBC News also revealed earlier this year that many Google employees of color, including Black and Latinos, had been instructed to take leave medically after reporting incidents of bias or discrimination. Some employees claimed they were eventually fired from their positions at the company.
Timnit Gebru, an artificial intelligence researcher, has claimed that Google fired her last year for criticizing the company’s lack of diversity in its workforce and fighting managers who opposed publishing a critical paper she wrote. Erika Munro Kennly, who was responsible for the diversity and strategy departments at Google, said in January to Corporate Counsel that there is a general feeling of being “undervalued” as Black woman at Google.
According to company data, workers who identified as “Black+” female left Google at the highest rate of any other racial-gender group than “Native” “American+” female last year. Last year, Google stated that it would increase retention by increasing support staffing levels and programs.
