According to Reuters, California's Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) is investigating how Google treats its black female employees. The report said that after receiving a formal complaint, the regulator has been asking employees about harassment and discrimination. The report did not mention that DFEH made charges against Google in the same way that Activision Blizzard did, and said that the ongoing inquiries did not necessarily mean that Google could face charges in the end.
According to a diversity report released by Google earlier this year, black women make up about 1.8 percent of its workforce and are leaving the company at a higher than normal rate. In the report, the company said it had "room for improvement" in retaining underrepresented talent.
We have heard from former employees about issues related to fairness. Earlier this year, lawsuits filed against Google by four former female employees were given class action status, claiming they received lower bonuses and salaries than their male counterparts.
The company has also made headlines before, as AI ethicist Timnit Gebru claimed she was retaliated against and fired for demanding that the company be more transparent in the publication process. (Gebru said she encountered retaliation from the company for her work criticizing her language model.)
Another female member of Google's AI ethics team was also fired because she said she faced discrimination by searching for Gebru in her email.
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