New Delhi: Google gave Andy Rubin, the creator of the Android software, a $90-million-dollar severance package despite credible allegations of sexual misconduct against him, according to the New York Times.
Rubin left Google in 2014, and his exit was seen as an amicable end to an extremely advantageous partnership for the internet giant. However, an employee of the company had levelled allegations of sexual misconduct against Rubin, a fact that was not made public by Google. She had accused Rubin of coercing her into performing oral sex in a hotel room in 2013. The two of them were in an extra-marital relationship, but she wanted to break things off and went to the hotel room to do so, NYT quoted company executives as saying.
Google conducted an investigation and found the allegations to be credible. Post this, Larry Page, the co-founder of the company, asked him to resign. Google had no legal obligation to pay him an exorbitant severance package, but the company offered him a $90-million exit package, which would be paid in instalments of $2 million per month for four years.
Also read: The #MeToo Movement Is a Step Towards Gender Equality
After the NYT report was published, Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, and Eileen Naughton , the vice-president for people operations, sent out an email to all company employees reassuring them about Google’s commitment towards an inclusive and safe workplace, including a hard line against inappropriate conduct. In the memo they highlighted that in the past two years, 48 employments have been terminated due to sexual harassment allegations and none of them received a severance package. The email did not make any direct allusions to the allegations made against Rubin.
Google CEO @sundarpichai has just sent out this statement regarding the NYT sexual misconduct story. Notably, it does not refute any of the allegations outlined in the story.https://t.co/z9uKeC98s8 pic.twitter.com/UoOsUUhyuR
— Cyrus Farivar (@cfarivar) October 25, 2018
Multiple cases of misconduct against Andy Rubin
Andy Rubin’s exit from Google as a consequence of sexual harassment was reported last year by Information. A spokesman for Rubin had dismissed the allegations at that time and stated that the relationship was consensual. A civil suit filed by Rubin’s wife, Rie Rubin, claimed that he had an ‘ownership relationship’ with several women while married, paying hundreds of dollars to them. The suit also consisted of an email which Rubin sent to a woman, in which he wrote, “You will be happy being taken care of. Being owned is kinda like you are my property, and I can loan you to other people.”
According to sources, Rubin often berated subordinates, calling them stupid or incompetent, and Google did nothing to control his behaviour. The company docked off his bonus when bondage sex videos were found on his work computer.
Sam Singer, spokesman for Andy Rubin, was quoted by the NYT as disputing the fact that Rubin was made aware of any misconduct and saying that he left the company on his own accord. In a statement, Rubin said that the NYT story grossly over-exaggerates the compensation offered to him. “Specifically, I never coerced a woman to have sex in a hotel room. These false allegations are part of a smear campaign by my ex-wife to disparage me during a divorce and custody battle,” he further added.
Also read: #MeToo: How Unsafe Working Environments Hinder India’s Economic Development
Several others protected by Google
According to the NYT story, Andy Rubin is one of three top company executives that Google has protected from sexual harassment allegations. Two were asked to leave, but with exorbitant exit packages. One is still employed in the company. It also highlighted Google’s inability to fairly enforce rules regarding workplace relationships.
In 2007, David C. Drummond, Alphabet’s chief legal advisor, entered into an extra-marital relationship with Jennifer Blakely. They had a child, after which they revealed the relationship to the company HR who made it clear that Blakely had to be transferred from her post. Since the affair, Drummond has had a flourishing career, while Blakely was transferred to sales and left the company a year later. “Google felt like I was the liability,” she said to the NYT.
In 2013, Richard DeVaul, a director at Google X, interviewed Star Simpson, a hardware engineer, and asked her to take off her top and offered her a back rub. She relented to a neck rub because, “I didn’t have enough spine or backbone to shut that down as a 24-year-old,” she said. A few weeks later she was informed that she had not got the job. Two years later when she approached Google, an HR official told her that her allegations were “more likely than not” true and appropriate action will be taken. She was also asked to keep quiet about what happened. In a statement, DeVaul has apologised for an “error of judgement”.
In 2015, Amit Singhal, a senior vice-president, was accused of groping an employee. Google investigated and found her claims credible. It did not fire Singhal but accepted his resignation and paid him millions of dollars in an exit package, and prevented him from working for a competitor.