Google will soon release its workforce data, after allegations that the company doesn't hire enough minorities and women surfaced.
Recent protests demanding more diversity in the workforce have been putting a strain on the technology industry. Google has refrained from exposing its diversity data ever since the issue surfaced, but has now bent under the pressure. The company announced its decision after its annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday.
The development came after civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson led a protest on a number of industry issues. Activists gathered outside Google headquarters, rallying about diversity and the company's associations with conservative business groups, as well as other labor problems. Other resolutions involved Google's disclosure of political lobbying, doing away with financial maneuvering in regards to corporate taxes and lessening CEO Larry Page and co-founder Sergey Brin's powers as controlling shareholders. However, the shareholder vote rejected several of the aforementioned resolutions.
David Drummond, Google's chief legal officer, told Mercury News, "We're working very hard. We're not doing enough and we can do better." He said that Google was working on computer science programs with historically black colleges.
With regards to the company's long-time refusal to share its workforce data, Drummond admitted that Google has realized its mistake on the issue. "We've come to the conclusion that we're wrong about that," he said. Drummond, the company's fourth-highest paid officer, is black. Google currently has three female directors in its employ as well.
Jackson has also made similar entreaties to other tech companies. The activist previously went to Hewlett-Packard and eBay this past spring, citing studies that show how blacks and Latinos lack high-level tech positions.
According to the Associated Press, Google will be releasing the data next month. The numbers will come from a report filed by major US employers with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, though the report does not require employers to disclose the information. Around 50,000 people currently make up Google's workforce.
