Jalon Hall, a Black, deaf employee and the first of her kind hired by Google, has filed a lawsuit against the tech giant, alleging race and disability discrimination. Ms Hall accuses Google of failing to deliver on its promises of inclusivity, despite her being hailed as a diversity success story.
According to Wired, Ms. Hall's lawsuit paints a contrasting picture between Google's public image and its internal practices. While Google touted Ms. Hall on social media and company events as an example of their inclusive work environment, the lawsuit alleges she faced a hostile work environment rife with racial bias.
Ms Hall claims that after initial promises of supporting sign language interpreters, Google restricted access to interpreters after assigning her a role focused on reviewing content against YouTube's child safety rules. The lawsuit alleges that managers refused interpreters due to confidentiality concerns, despite established codes of ethics for sign language interpreters.
This lack of accommodation caused Ms. Hall to struggle to meet performance expectations. Unable to efficiently understand the video content without an interpreter, Ms. Hall reportedly reviewed far fewer videos than the expected quota. This resulted in slow career development compared to her peers.
“I felt humiliated when I realized I wasn't going to grow in my career,” Ms. Hall said Wired.
In addition, the lawsuit details an instance in which a manager called Ms. Hall an “aggressive, black-deaf woman” and suggested she take on a sales role instead. Additionally, Hall claims she was excluded from discussions and passed over for promotions due to “inaccurate evaluations.”
Although Google has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit on procedural grounds, they have not addressed the specific allegations. However, Ms Hall is determined to see change.
“Google is using me to make them seem inclusive to the deaf community and the overall disability community,” Ms. Hall told Wired. “In reality, they need to do better.”
Ms. Hall's case sheds light on the underrepresentation of Black and disabled employees at Google, a company with nearly 183,000 employees.
Black women in particular have a higher departure rate than women of other races. Google's deaf and hard of hearing employee group reportedly consists of just 40 members, company data from last year showed.
Ms. Hall's lawsuit seeks not only personal compensation, but also systemic change. She demands strengthening of policies to ensure that future workers with disabilities receive good housing and equal opportunities.