45 Google employees allege they were retaliated against for complaining to HR in internal document

Dozens of Google employees allege they were retaliated against after filing complaints with human resources, with many of the cases being complaints of sexual harassment or discrimination.

That's according to an internal document containing 45 claims of retaliation reported on Monday by Recode, which wrote that the employees allege they were "demoted, pushed out, or placed on less desirable projects" after filing complaints with HR. This document was reportedly collected around the time of a sit-in in April to protest alleged retaliation at the company, with harassment or discrimination being the subject of the complaint in 28 cases.

One employee in the document reportedly writes that they received a "veiled threat" from HR suggesting their immigration status might be at risk should they continue to pursue their complaint about "something unethical happening at Google," Recode reports.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

This report comes after two Google employees who organized a walkout in protest of the company's handling of sexual harassment complaints alleged they faced retaliation as a result. Organizer Claire Stapleton said in July that after the walkout, "my manager started ignoring me, my work was given to other people, and I was told to go on medical leave, even though I'm not sick." She wrote she ultimately decided to resign from the company "after the heads of my department branded me with a kind of scarlet letter that makes it difficult to do my job or find another one."

A Google spokesperson would not comment on this document specifically but told Recode that "reporting misconduct takes courage and we want to provide care and support to people who raise concerns." The spokesperson also said that "all instances of inappropriate conduct reported to us are investigated rigorously."

While the details of each complaint vary, one employee familiar with the document told Vox, "Everybody's cases are different — and everybody's are horrifying." Read the full report at Recode.