Google is now facing a new lawsuit alleging that a female engineer faced sexual harassment and the company failed to do anything to prevent it from happening. Loretta Lee, the plaintiff, was a developer at Google between 2008 and 2016 says that she was the subject of constant groping, touching and inappropriate conduct. To make matters worse, Google intentionally or negligently, allegedly failed to follow-up on her complaints, which left her unprotected and isolated.
Due to her feeling isolated and unprotected, her performance suffered and was later fired at the start of 2016, even though documents say that she was considered an excellent performer and a rising star. Lee claims she was subject to harassment almost every day. Her colleagues would make lewd comments about her. In addition, she says that her drinks were spiked with whiskey, her desk was regularly pelted with balls and was sent messages by male colleagues asking if she wanted a “horizontal bug.” It didn’t just end at the office either. A colleague apparently showed up at her home, unannounced, with a bottle of liquor and refused to leave when asked.
Right before she was dismissed by Google, a male employee apparently snuck underneath her desk, and when she approached, he jumped out. The person then explained “you’ll never know what I was doing.” This led Lee to believe that there may have been some surveillance equipment installed around her work area. A day later, another co-worker allegedly toyed with her breasts in public, which then led to prolonged discussions with HR, but officials found the claims “unsubstantiated.”
According to the document, Lee explains how her fear of being cast our was coming true because colleagues would not longer approve of her work. Due to this, it led to her being labeled as a poor performer and was eventually dismissed from the company. Lee accuses Google of having a problem with identifying and properly tackling sexual harassment in the workplace.
Lee is looking for in excess of $25,000 in damages from Google for wrongful termination and discrimination.
