Two former software engineers at Google, one who gained notoriety for a memorandum he circulated throughout the company, have alleged that Google unlawfully discriminated against them for their political viewpoints. They also claim unlawful discrimination based on race and sex, saying they experienced "reverse" discrimination since they were white males.
The political viewpoint component of these engineers' dispute is based on California law. The engineers allege that Google had a culture in which employees who were seen as "conservative" in their political persuasion got treated unfairly, particularly if their viewpoints were brought out in to the light. They are seeking class-action status, which would mean their lawsuit would extend to all other employees who have experienced wrongful termination or other forms of discrimination because of their political views.
One of the plaintiffs in this lawsuit is no stranger to publicity. He was fired shortly after he circulated a document through Google in which he suggested that the reason women do not excel in coding software had to do with some sort of innate differences between the sexes.
He also argued that Google was not tolerant of alternative political viewpoints on this issue. Many people, including Google's CEO, condemned the man's ideas, suggesting that they reflect the systemic problems in the world of science and technology when it comes to gender equality.
Whether this lawsuit will ultimately succeed or not remains to be seen. Google has denied the allegations that it acted unlawfully and has, in what some might call a rare move, even suggested that they were eager to clear the business's name and record in court.
Source: Moneywatch, "James Damore lawsuit: fired engineer sues Google," Alain Sherter, Jan. 8, 2018
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