This conversation in question is based on a conversation with Jeremy, the first Google Ads employee who resigned in August 2024. He asked that only his name be used to protect his identity. Business Insider confirmed his employment, his request to move, and his resignation after the request was denied.
I was a senior program manager for Google Ads. Before that, I was recruited to be the manager of the news project team. I was hired there in September 2021 and had been at Google for about three years when I resigned in August.
For the first year and a half, it was great. Everyone had the freedom to live where they wanted to live. It had been a while since the danger of this epidemic, so we were able to meet quarterly for meetings outside the country.
The team I was on at Google was part of a pilot program where employees were allowed to work remotely indefinitely.
Even though we all worked in different places, there was still a good sense of community.
In June 2023, Google changed its remote policy so that you may need VP approval to work fully remotely.
My department took the position that it would deny all new remote applications going forward unless there were exceptional circumstances and began trying to get everyone together in Chicago and Boulder.
Editor’s note: Google employees were told in 2022 that they have to be in the office at least three days a week. In June 2023, the company told employees that full-time work would be allowed “exceptionally.” The company also offers “work from anywhere for weeks.”
I was on a long-distance job in Chicago, and wanted to move to Minneapolis to be closer to family and to care for my father, who has Parkinson’s disease.
I submitted the application for the first time in March, and it was rejected. So, I gave more information, I think maybe I wasn’t clear enough, and it was rejected again.
I asked the VP who denied it, his boss, and his boss, and Philipp Schindler, Google’s chief business officer. In fact, I said that I was asking to go from a completely remote place to another completely remote place to be with my father who was dying.
I didn’t get a response from anyone other than a boilerplate email from the VP, who denied the request.
Google’s new reality
The whole process was very depressing. It was like banging my head against the wall.
There is a strange psychological feeling for me. I have a very remote job, so it doesn’t make any difference to them if I’m in one remote location or the other.
It feels like Google is no longer the company I joined in 2021. Honestly, I mourn the loss of a workplace that was so fun.
I think that getting promoted at Google is now related to how often you go into the office.
When my class is reorganized in September 2023, I made it clear that I wanted to work remotely, and I think that probably limited my workload.
My manager at the time told me that if I wanted to move to Google, I should go into an office.
It was just friendly advice, but for me, if I feel like it’s the truth of Google right now. It seems that the company has a plan to force remote workers.
There is no ranking at all, at least in my group. During this pandemic, there was a feeling that workers were free to move around, create their own lives the way they wanted, and still have good jobs.
Now, those people who moved have a very difficult time.
When I had my first interview for Google, I was told that it was different from other companies. That was Google where I was hired.
Now, I feel like a fool for believing that work would care about me as a person.
A Google spokesperson told Business Insider that promotions are based on motivation related to business priorities and business needs and that remote workers are encouraged.
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