Gender Discrimination and Retaliation at Pinterest

Abstract

Francoise Brougher joined Pinterest as a chief operating officer in March 2018. Earlier she worked with Square and Google. She worked hard to augment the revenue of the company from US$500 million to US$1.1 billion in a short span of about two years. A large team of about 1,500 staff reported to her. However, soon after joining the company, she realized that the decision-making was monopolized by cronies of the chief executive officer (CEO). At the time of filing application for initial public offer, she noticed discrepancies in her compensation as compared to her male counterparts. Raising the issue became a bone of contention between Brougher and the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Todd Morgenfeld. The matter became worse as the CEO Ben Silbermann also sided with the CFO. Ultimately, Brougher was shown the door in a most unceremonious manner. Anguished by the treatment meted out to her at Pinterest, Brougher filed a lawsuit against gender discrimination and retaliation. Both the parties reached an out-of-court settlement that instantly hit the headlines across the globe because of the magnitude and nature of the terms of settlement. This case explores the underlying questions emanating from the nature of the case as well as general incidence of gender discrimination and retaliation at the workplaces across the world.