A class action lawsuit regarding gender pay discrimination brought against Google has been dismissed by a judge in California, according to a report from Reuters. However, this is more of a stay than an actual dismissal, as Superior Court Judge Mary Wiss advised the plaintiffs to file again within 30 days to continue with the case. The reason the case was dropped in its current form is due to the action seemingly being too wide-reaching in its claims. Specifically, that the allegations in the suit were brought forward on behalf of all women who have worked at Google. With the suggestion of the dismissal being there is no firm evidence that all women have been subjected to the alleged levels of discrimination. As a result the advice was to refile the suit but this time more clearly focusing on the actual plaintiffs who originally made the allegations and had specifically been the subject of discrimination based on their gender.
Speaking of the specifics or the original claim, the accusations stem back to September (although allegations of gender pay discrimination had surfaced earlier) when three individuals filed a grievance stating Google was not only paying women less than their male counterparts, but were also essentially stifling career prospects by placing women in positions where further upward progression would be less possible. Claims which Google have denied. Judge Wiss also explained that more evidence will need to be provided by two of the three women in question to adequately highlight that the work those women were doing was comparable to work done by higher-paid male counterparts.
A lawyer acting on behalf of the three women reportedly confirmed that a new suit will be brought against Google in January, taking account of the suggestions made by Judge Wiss. While also stating the new filing will highlight how Google pays women less than men “in nearly every job classification.” Something which will likely be demonstrated by the specifics of the three original plaintiffs who reportedly occupied vastly different positions during their time at Google – with one being a software engineer, another in a communications position, and the third holding a managerial role within the company.