Google employee made redundant after reporting sexual harassment, court hears

"A senior Google employee has claimed she was made redundant after reporting a manager who told clients stories about his swinger lifestyle and showed a nude of his wife. Victoria Woodall told an employment tribunal she was subjected to a campaign of retaliation by the company after whistleblowing on the man who was later sacked. Google UK's internal investigation found the manager had touched two female colleagues without their consent, and his behaviour amounted to sexual harassment, documents seen by the BBC in court show."

"The tech giant denies retaliating against Woodall and argues she became "paranoid" after whistleblowing and began to view normal business activities as "sinister". In her claim, Woodall says her own boss subjected her to a "relentless campaign of retaliation" after her complaint also implicated his close friends who were later disciplined for witnessing the manager's behaviour and failing to challenge it."

Victoria Woodall says she was made redundant after reporting a manager who bragged about swinger activities, showed a nude photograph, and allegedly touched two female colleagues without consent. Google's internal investigation concluded the manager's behaviour amounted to sexual harassment and led to his dismissal. Woodall alleges a sustained campaign of retaliation by her employer and by her line manager after her complaint implicated colleagues who witnessed misconduct. She also alleges a persistent 'boys' club' culture, citing a men's-only chairman's lunch funded until December 2022. Google denies retaliation, says the investigation found no systemic culture, and discontinued the event as inconsistent with policy. A tribunal judgement is expected soon.

Read at www.bbc.com