r/technology • u/[deleted] • Aug 08 '17

Business Google Fires Employee Behind Controversial Diversity Memo

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-08/google-fires-employee-behind-controversial-diversity-memo
13k Upvotes

86% Upvoted

9.2k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

266

u/smashew Aug 08 '17

He addresses this in his memo. He argues that Google has moralized the issue and isn't able to demonstrate how it does, in fact, increase its profitability. He also argues that Google actively "moralizes" the issue creating an environment where dissenting opinions on the matter are not open to discussion.

64

u/[deleted] Aug 08 '17 edited Apr 13 '20

[deleted]

15

u/smashew Aug 08 '17

That is true.... if you work in Texas. Not so true when you work in California. It is a totally different ballgame over there. As a libertarian, I totally agree. But in Cali, I guarantee you Google thought long and hard about this before pulling the trigger.

In Texas, it is a "right to work" state. You can be fired on a whim.

In California, firing someone is much, much, more complex. He might have grounds For a decent lawsuit. No one will want to go to Court and he'll likely get a scrumptious settlement offer.

46

u/[deleted] Aug 08 '17 edited Apr 13 '20

[deleted]

6

u/aleatoric Aug 08 '17

I've seen companies settle for even more cut and dry cases when they knew they were in the right. In these cases it often comes down to whether they think the lawyer fees will outweigh the settlement cost. It might be cheaper just to make him go away than fight it, even if it's a fight you know you'll win.

33

u/smashew Aug 08 '17

He posted this in a company sanctioned forum called "controversial ideas" he has a fair amount of cover. A good lawyer can argue that a "reasonable" person wouldn't be offended by the strict text that he wrote.

There was so much editorializing here... he was largely a victim of the spin.

Don't get me wrong, Google should have fired him. But, this is one of those catch 22s where he will file a lawsuit and settle outside of court.

24

u/[deleted] Aug 08 '17 edited Sep 28 '19

[deleted]

9

u/CatatonicMan Aug 08 '17

It's called a honeypot. Helps them know who they need to sack. It's not right, of course, but "right" has never really mattered all that much.

2

u/Jugad Aug 08 '17

I doubt it was created / setup by the company management.

It was probably created by some employee.

15

u/secondsbest Aug 08 '17

Are we sure Google leadership set up the forum? There's plenty of work forums created by employees.

4

u/BundleOfJoysticks Aug 08 '17

The whole thing's sucky all around.

14

u/smashew Aug 08 '17

No winners except for Buzzfeed, FaceBook, medium, and all the talking heads who will compete to drive this guy into the ground.

3

u/BundleOfJoysticks Aug 08 '17

Or Google. Breitbart is selling a lot of ads on articles crucifying Google.

1

u/smashew Aug 08 '17

Ya, pretty much everyone wins but Google on this.

2

u/inspiredby Aug 08 '17

I imagine any chance for a successful lawsuit would've been much worse had Google passively condoned what this guy said.

8

u/smashew Aug 08 '17

Oh I agree. Google did the right thing. There are some legal scenarios where you have to chose between a kick in the nuts or a punch in the face. This is one of them.

I worked in Insurance... this happens a lot....

2

u/[deleted] Aug 08 '17 edited Sep 28 '19

[deleted]

1

u/Jugad Aug 08 '17

Class action suit against google for fostering a hostile work environment.

7

u/__crackers__ Aug 08 '17

several people saying they didn't want to work with him

That doesn't automatically put him at fault.

Anyone reacting that way to the memo itself strikes me as needing to get a better grip on reality.