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I believe it's illegal in the US to fire someone for their political leanings, but not if you say something outrageous like women aren't built for tech jobs (or

I believe it's illegal in the US to fire someone for their political leanings, but not if you say something outrageous like women aren't built for tech jobs (or whatever he said). That being said, it's never a good idea to get on a soapbox about politics at work (or anywhere really). It doesn't make a difference in your listeners opinions and only gets people with opposing views aggravated. Best to just think about the issues and vote come election.

boobsbr 9y ago
> I believe it's illegal in the US to fire someone for their political leanings, but not if you say something outrageous like women aren't built for tech jobs (or whatever he said). It's easy to circumvent the legal issue, just have a vague code of conduct and claim the employee broke said code of conduct.
- Clubber 9y ago
  I agree, or just attribute it to not having a "cultural fit."
- ForRealsies 9y ago
  "You really need to read it again. He never brings of the topic of suitability. His section about biological differences only discusses why genders tend to choose certain professions."
  - Chris2048 9y ago
    Quotes?
- anapaix 9y ago
  he complained to the labor board about this issue before he wrote the memo, and apparently it is illegal in California to fire someone for complaining about their work conditions. certainly not a slam dunk case, but he may have some reasonable basis for a case.
dionidium 9y ago
"That being said, it's never a good idea to get on a soapbox about politics at work (or anywhere really)." The difference, presumably, is that people inside Google are already talking about all kinds of other political issues on internal message boards. They want to believe they're different, that they're in a new kind of enlightened environment where politics can be discussed by reasonable people without danger. But this is ridiculous. It's easy to talk about things for which there's wide agreement. You don't even notice those things as politics. It's only politics when you disagree. I don't suppose the human beings at Google are any better at talking about this stuff than any other human beings. If they want their workplace policies to reflect that, then fine! But there are a whole bunch of implicitly accepted leftist positions that they shouldn't be talking about, either. That's the hard part, because, again, they don't even notice those positions as politics. Here are some Google executives saying exactly this: https://youtu.be/wa8nc27Jb8E https://youtu.be/wa8nc27Jb8E Just as Uber and AirBnb are slowly revealing why we had hotel and taxi regulations in the first place, this Google case shows why our grandparents established those old-fashioned ideas about politics in the workplace.
- 1_2__4 9y ago
  You are 100% correct. Politics is shouted to the rafters in every forum inside Google, but with a voice that starts out from the extreme left and migrates further leftward from there. I can completely understand why conservatives - or even moderates - feel unwelcome there. It's really bad.
- ForRealsies 9y ago
  Wasn't Google asking for input as to why there weren't more women interested in their industry?
  - Clubber 9y ago
    I guess they got their answer. :)
LyndsySimon 9y ago
> I believe it's illegal in the US to fire someone for their political leanings In most circumstances it's perfectly legal to do so. Exceptions include states with specific laws that protect political affiliation (which includes California) and federal government employees.
vnchr 9y ago
Someone asked in another HN thread. Federal employees are protected, and some states protect political affiliation including California: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14953325 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14953325
Chris2048 9y ago
> (or whatever he said) Really? Leave it up to the media to decide what he was fired for afterwards? > it's never a good idea to get on a soapbox about politics at work Many companies actively encourage this, when it comes to left-leaning politics.
- Clubber 9y ago
  >Really? Leave it up to the media to decide what he was fired for afterwards? I honestly don't care. Anyone who sends a company wide memo is asking for trouble. The news throws so much stuff that you are expected to get "outraged" over. It's not healthy to absorb it all. Looks like we might go nuclear with North Korea real soon, if that happens, none of this will matter.
  - Chris2048 9y ago
    > Anyone who sends a company wide memo He didn't.

boobsbr 9y ago

> I believe it's illegal in the US to fire someone for their political leanings, but not if you say something outrageous like women aren't built for tech jobs (or whatever he said). It's easy to circumvent the legal issue, just have a vague code of conduct and claim the employee broke said code of conduct.

Clubber 9y ago
I agree, or just attribute it to not having a "cultural fit."
ForRealsies 9y ago
"You really need to read it again. He never brings of the topic of suitability. His section about biological differences only discusses why genders tend to choose certain professions."
- Chris2048 9y ago
  Quotes?
anapaix 9y ago
he complained to the labor board about this issue before he wrote the memo, and apparently it is illegal in California to fire someone for complaining about their work conditions. certainly not a slam dunk case, but he may have some reasonable basis for a case.

dionidium 9y ago

"That being said, it's never a good idea to get on a soapbox about politics at work (or anywhere really)." The difference, presumably, is that people inside Google are already talking about all kinds of other political issues on internal message boards. They want to believe they're different, that they're in a new kind of enlightened environment where politics can be discussed by reasonable people without danger. But this is ridiculous. It's easy to talk about things for which there's wide agreement. You don't even notice those things as politics. It's only politics when you disagree. I don't suppose the human beings at Google are any better at talking about this stuff than any other human beings. If they want their workplace policies to reflect that, then fine! But there are a whole bunch of implicitly accepted leftist positions that they shouldn't be talking about, either. That's the hard part, because, again, they don't even notice those positions as politics. Here are some Google executives saying exactly this: https://youtu.be/wa8nc27Jb8E https://youtu.be/wa8nc27Jb8E Just as Uber and AirBnb are slowly revealing why we had hotel and taxi regulations in the first place, this Google case shows why our grandparents established those old-fashioned ideas about politics in the workplace.

1_2__4 9y ago
You are 100% correct. Politics is shouted to the rafters in every forum inside Google, but with a voice that starts out from the extreme left and migrates further leftward from there. I can completely understand why conservatives - or even moderates - feel unwelcome there. It's really bad.
ForRealsies 9y ago
Wasn't Google asking for input as to why there weren't more women interested in their industry?
- Clubber 9y ago
  I guess they got their answer. :)

LyndsySimon 9y ago

> I believe it's illegal in the US to fire someone for their political leanings In most circumstances it's perfectly legal to do so. Exceptions include states with specific laws that protect political affiliation (which includes California) and federal government employees.

vnchr 9y ago

Someone asked in another HN thread. Federal employees are protected, and some states protect political affiliation including California: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14953325 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14953325

Chris2048 9y ago

> (or whatever he said) Really? Leave it up to the media to decide what he was fired for afterwards? > it's never a good idea to get on a soapbox about politics at work Many companies actively encourage this, when it comes to left-leaning politics.

Clubber 9y ago
>Really? Leave it up to the media to decide what he was fired for afterwards? I honestly don't care. Anyone who sends a company wide memo is asking for trouble. The news throws so much stuff that you are expected to get "outraged" over. It's not healthy to absorb it all. Looks like we might go nuclear with North Korea real soon, if that happens, none of this will matter.
- Chris2048 9y ago
  > Anyone who sends a company wide memo He didn't.