On September 14, 2017, former Google employees Kelly Ellis, Holly Pease, and Kelli Wisuri filed a class action lawsuit against the company for alleged discrimination against female workers. The class action claims Google violated the California Equal Pay Act, failed to pay wages due to employees who had been dismissed, and is guilty of unfair and unlawful business practices.
A portion of the class action complaint states:
“…Google has discriminated and continues to discriminate against its female employees by paying [them] less than male employees with similar skills, experience, and duties; by assigning and keeping women in job ladders and levels with lower compensation ceilings and advancement opportunities than those to which men with similar skills, experience, and duties are assigned and kept; and by promoting fewer women and promoting women more slowly than it has promoted similarly-qualified men.”
According to the suit, “The net result of this systemic discrimination is that Google pays women less than men for comparable work.”
Ellis was a software engineer for Google and left the company in 2014 because of the “sexist culture” surrounding back-end software engineering and women in tech roles, stating that nearly all of Google’s back-end software engineers are men.
The company claims that there are systems in place that work to prevent sexist hiring, compensation, and promotion practices. However, according to the suit, a 2015 U.S. Department of Labor report assessing 21,000 Google employees showed, “systemic compensation disparities against women pretty much across the entire workforce.” The company disagrees with this conclusion.
In recent months, a judge turned down the women’s request to turn their lawsuit into a class action, stating that the qualifications for joining the class action were overbroad, but in January the lawsuit was revised and brought back to court, again seeking class action status.
Experiencing Workplace Gender Discrimination in Philadelphia? Call Golomb LegalToday.
Gender discrimination in the workplace has powerful negative effects for female employees. If you feel your employer is paying women unfairly or denying female applicants or employees access to certain jobs or promotions because of their gender, do not hesitate to speak up. If it has happened to you, it has likely happened to other women who have been employed by the same company, and you may be able to file a class action lawsuit against your employer.
At Golomb Legal, P.C., we exist to help people who have been treated unfairly and provide legal recourse for people who have been harmed by others’ unethical or discriminatory behavior. Make us your legal counsel in your workplace discrimination matter and bring our experienced Philadelphia class action lawyers onto your team.
Call (215) 278-4449 to speak to one of our knowledgeable, friendly staff members, or send us an email to schedule your free case evaluation with an attorney.