Google to tie bosses' pay to environment and diversity goals

Google building - AP

Google will tie senior executive bonuses to their efforts furthering its environmental and diversity goals from next year.

It follows Microsoft, Intel, and IBM in linking parts of compensation to hiring metrics.

The technology company told shareholders on Friday that the financial incentives would be determined by executives “performance supporting the environmental, social and governance goals that have long been a key part of Alphabet and Google’s work”.

Google said it would provide updates on what those specific goals were next year and did not disclose details on the amount.

In its annual general meeting in June, shareholders will hold a vote on whether Google should publish an annual sustainability report because its workforce was too “white and male”.

Google encouraged a vote against the motion, adding that it was committed to improving diversity, equity and inclusion including increasing reports on workforce representation, suggesting that hiring may form an integral part of the bonus.

Representation of women, black and Latinx employees had increased since 2018, it said. However a 2020 diversity report showed that black and Latinx people accounted for only 7.9pc of Google’s workforce and only 6.8pc of its leadership team.

Last year chief executive Sundar Pichai promised to more than double the number of black and non white “Googlers” by 2025.

Google lost Danielle Brown, its diversity chief, amid unrest over workplaces issues in 2019.