The project manager, who was fired for slating the CEO on social media, has filed a legal suit in retaliation. Meanwhile, the CEO, Tony Fadell has also put in his papers.
All’s not well at Nest, the company acquired by Google in 2014. The project manager, who was fired from Nest, for slating the CEO on Facebook, has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in the United States against both Nest Labs and Google.
Chris Backer, the attorney representing this ex-Nest employee, has issued an official statement, which says, “Silicon Valley’s richest and most powerful companies either do not know, or do not care, that employees have rights under the National Labor Relations Act.”
It further states, “Employees have the right to discuss their working conditions. Employees have the right to effectuate change by talking with co-workers, former co-workers, bosses, and even reporters about their working conditions. Employees have the right to use social media for these purposes. It is illegal to harass or fire employees for exercising rights guaranteed them by the United States Government.”
The statement from, the attorney alleges that Tony Fadell, the current CEO of Nest, was a bad leader. He has created a work environment that is a total mess.
Baker even got Google under its attack saying, “Even with Google regularly being identified as a great place to work, it still has work to do. Google must be a leader when it comes to recognising and protecting the rights of employees working at its companies, and particularly at Nest.”
The statement further stated that Google should revise its confidentiality policies to make clear that employees have the right to discuss their working conditions with whomever they wish.
Meanwhile, Tony Fadell, the CEO of Nest, has stepped down as well.
If the employee wins the case, the NLRB could ask Nest to rehire him and pay him back wages, and force Google to change its policies going forward.
