Boulder Googlers Walk Out To Protest Company Culture

BOULDER, CO -- At 11:10 a.m., Boulder's Google employees did the same thing that their colleagues in earlier time zones had been doing all morning – walked out of their offices to protest discrimination, harassment, and racism that they say is embedded in their employer's corporate culture. The walkouts started in Asia and spread across the globe with each protest planned at 11:10 a.m. local time. In Boulder, the employees from various Google buildings gathered in front of the main campus on 30th Street.

beautiful day in boulder for the #googlewalkout pic.twitter.com/y7Dj8vrD38
— Isaac Hepworth (@isaach) November 1, 2018

After an investigation published in The New York Times last week that revealed Google had not only paid millions in exit packages to male executives accused of harassment, but had also kept mum about the accusations, several Google employees instigated the demonstrations. In an open letter published on The Cut this morning, the movement's seven core organizers publicly laid out their grievances against their employer.

"The [New York Times] article provided a narrow window into a culture we, as Google employees, know well," they wrote. "These stories are our stories. We share them in hushed tones to trusted peers, friends, and partners. There are thousands of us, at every level of the company. And we’ve had enough."

Do you like this article? Join the Boulder Patch on Facebook!

The letter calls for greater support for accusers, an end to forced arbitration, a commitment to equal pay and opportunity for diverse workers, a publicly disclosed sexual harassment transparency report, a clear policy for reporting harassment, and employee advocates higher in the corporate structure.

Grateful to stand in solidarity with @Google Boulder #googlewalkout pic.twitter.com/vbwvhC2l68
— Sanette Tanaka Sloan (@ssktanaka) November 1, 2018

"All employees and contract workers across the company deserve to be safe," the organizers wrote. "We’ve waited for leadership to fix these problems, but have come to this conclusion: no one is going to do it for us. So we are here, standing together, protecting and supporting each other. We demand an end to the sexual harassment, discrimination, and the systemic racism that fuel this destructive culture."

Stay in touch with the news and events that shape Boulder County. Sign up for your free Patch newsletter here.

Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images - Google's UK Headquarters on November 01, 2018 in London, England.