'Not an influence' | Google employee loses tribunal after alleging retaliation for reporting sexual comments

A Google employee who reported inappropriate sexual comments made to a female client has lost her tribunal claims for whistleblowing detriment, victimisation and disability discrimination.

A London Employment Tribunal ruled that although the claimant’s complaint about a colleague’s behaviour was a protected disclosure and protected act, the treatment she later complained about was not linked to that disclosure.

The tribunal said Google had shown that the actions taken towards the employee were "not in any way because of or materially influenced by the claimant’s disclosures.”

The claimant, Victoria Woodall, worked as a Senior Industry Head at Google UK. In August 2022 she raised concerns after a female client reported that a colleague had made inappropriate sexual remarks during a lunch meeting. The tribunal heard that Woodall reported the matter to her manager. An internal investigation followed and later resulted in the dismissal of the colleague involved.