Google employees, for the first time, coordinated with multiple activists and investors to create proposals and presented them at a shareholder meeting that took place on Wednesday. Not even this, but around 100 of Google employees protested outside the Alphabet headquarters while the meeting was still on.
This protest is an escalation of an employee’s movement within the company to demand more transparency from the leadership and to also draw more attention over issues lurking around Google’s sexual harassment policies.
Though there have been independent proposals from the investors as well as workers in the past, but Wednesday’s efforts were different because it was the first time a broad coalition between the employees and activists was formed. It was all done to pressurise Google.
A Google employee said that, “We’re here as members of the Google community saying that we have to do better. A lot of my coworkers are reporting sexual harassment to HR and HR is working to defend the company and the accusers”.
Out of all the proposals Google received on Wednesday, one focused on paying more attention to implement and adopt sexual harassment policies within the company. However, like the other twelve proposals that were up before the company, it also did not pass. Google communication executives refused to answer on any of the questions related to this matter.
The employees does say that Google has, in fact, taken measures to tackle such conditions but these efforts are still not enough. The other employees were concerned about their working conditions as they work for temporary, vendor, and contract employees (TVCs). One of the emoloyee said that many of his colleagues are unhappy about the workplace and low pay scale, but they choose to remain silent because they fear the management.
As far as Google is concerned, I’m sure they’ll come up with a solution.
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