Share

Google CEO Pichai says he's still the boss amid employee revolts

Mass employee walkouts. Leaks about an effort to get back into China. Successful demands to stop building artificial intelligence for the Pentagon. These days, Google workers are exerting an unusual level of control over their company.

But chief executive officer Sundar Pichai signalled on Thursday that he’s still in charge and won’t be constantly swayed by staff uprisings.

"We don’t run the company by referendum," Pichai said at a conference in New York on Thursday. "There are many good things about giving employees a lot of voice, out of that we have done well."

The internal dynamics may appear chaotic to outsiders, but they’re not as intense as some have characterised them to be, he added.

Google employs more than 50 000 full-time staff, but has maintained a more transparent culture than other corporate behemoths.

Employees openly debate on internal forums, and are free to speak their minds at weekly all-hands meetings where executives take questions.

On Thursday, thousands of Google employees walked out of their offices worldwide to protest the company’s handling of alleged misconduct by some executives.

Last week, the New York Times reported Android creator Andy Rubin received a $90m pay out after leaving because of a sexual harassment accusation by an employee. Google, a unit of Alphabet, says it doesn’t offer payouts to people it fires for sexual harassment anymore.

The company has also got heat from US politicians for ending an AI contract with the US military. Pichai said Thursday that the company still works with the military on many other projects.

* Sign up to Fin24's top news in your inbox: SUBSCRIBE TO FIN24 NEWSLETTER

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.96
-0.1%
Rand - Pound
23.92
-0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.43
+0.0%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.35
-0.0%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.1%
Platinum
908.05
+1.2%
Palladium
1,014.94
+1.3%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders