Google is under investigation in California for the way it treats Black women workers, report says

• The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing is investigating Google, Reuters reports.
• DFEH is talking to Black women employees who have worked for Alphabet, sources said.

Google is under investigation for the way it treats Black women workers, Reuters reported Friday.

California's civil rights regulator, the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, has interviewed multiple Black women who have worked for Google's parent firm Alphabet, Reuters reported, citing two sources and agency emails.

The emails viewed by Reuters said the interviews have centered on alleged harassment and discrimination in the workplace. One of the sources told Reuters at least one interview happened as recently as last month.

The two sources told Reuters the DFEH is interviewing both employees who filed official complaints and employees who didn't, suggesting the department is casting a broad net in its enquiries.

The DFEH did not immediately respond to an email sent by Insider outside of business hours asking for comment. It declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.

"Our goal is to ensure that every employee experiences Google as an inclusive workplace," Google said when contacted by Reuters, adding: "We'll continue to focus on this important work and thoroughly investigate any concerns, to make sure our workplace is representative and equitable."

Google did not immediately comment when contacted by Insider about Reuters' report.

Google has faced public scrutiny over its treatment of Black employees. Timnit Gebru, one of Google's leading AI researchers, departed the company in December last year. Gebru said she was fired while the company maintained she resigned.

After CEO Sundar Pichai sent an email to staff saying he was sorry if the case "seeded doubts." Later that same month, Gebru told the BBC he had failed to actually apologize.

"This institutional racism, it's not even just limited to Google. It's most of these institutions in general, and specifically in the tech companies, are institutionally racist," Gebru told the BBC.

Google employees told NBC in March that after they complained about racism and sexism at the company, they were told to take mental health leave. In September, a Black Google employee said he was stopped by security staff who didn't believe he worked for the company.