GOOGLELAND — Thousands of Google workers around the world staged walkouts last week to protest claims of sexual harassment and gender inequality.
Googlers in Tokyo, Zurich, Berlin, Singapore and New York took part in the protests.
According to the BBC, workers want to see changes in how sexual misconduct allegations are handled in house, especially an end to forced arbitration, which would finally allow victims to sue.
The walkout was held after news came out that Google actually gave former executive Andy Rubin a $90 million payout and kept details of sexual misconduct allegations that led to his resignation on the down low.
Rubin, credited as the creator of the Android mobile operating system, denies the allegations.
The New York Times, which dropped the Rubin story, also reported on several other sexual misconduct allegations by other Google executives.
According to some workers involved in the walkout, bosses had told them not to speak with the media, while others were told to refer reporters to Google's PR department.
In response, Google CEO Sundar Pichai went into damage control in an email to all staff saying, "I understand the anger and disappointment that many of you feel. I feel it as well, and I am fully committed to making progress on an issue that has persisted for far too long in our society… and, yes, here at Google, too."