A senior Google employee, Victoria Woodall, claims the company made her redundant after she reported sexual harassment by a manager. Woodall worked in Google’s UK Sales and Agencies team. She says the company retaliated against her after she blew the whistle on inappropriate behavior by a colleague.
Reporting the Manager’s Behavior
Woodall claims a female client reported that a manager boasted about his swinger lifestyle during a business lunch. The manager also allegedly showed a nude picture of his wife. Another client reported that the manager displayed explicit photos of his wife while scrolling through his phone.
Woodall reported these concerns to her boss, Matt Bush, leading to an internal investigation by Google. The investigation found that the manager had sexually harassed two female employees. He was dismissed for gross misconduct, while two senior colleagues were disciplined for not intervening.
Alleged Retaliation and Culture Concerns
Woodall’s complaint about the manager also implicated colleagues close to her boss. She claims this led to a “relentless campaign of retaliation.” Woodall said she was demoted and moved to a failing client account, which she described as a “poisoned chalice.”
She also accused Google of a “boys’ club” culture, citing the company’s funding of a men’s-only “chairman’s lunch” until 2022. Google claims it found no such culture, but canceled the event as it no longer aligned with company policies.
Redundancy Claims
In 2023, Google initiated a redundancy process that affected Woodall’s team. She claims the company pushed her out as part of a broader restructuring. In November 2023, Woodall alleges there was a final push to remove her from the team.
In her statement, Woodall says Debbie Weinstein, then vice president of Google UK, was shocked by her claims. However, she also claims that Weinstein later pushed to “exit people” from her team.
Google Denies Retaliation
Google denies that Woodall’s redundancy was related to her whistleblowing. The company states that her position, along with 25 others, was eliminated as part of a department-wide restructuring. Google acknowledges her whistleblowing but insists the decisions were based on normal business operations.
Woodall remains employed by Google and receives long-term sickness payments for stress related to work.