“I think we all feel the same way: supporting colleagues who have been harassed and making sure that this never happens again.”
Google’s management had been “very supportive” of the walkout, he added.
Another Google worker, Anna, who did not want to give her full name, told AFP they were making a point about “power structures” and telling their leaders that “things are changing and it’s time to revise what used to be considered as normal”.
In Singapore, dozens of employees gathered in an indoor space at Google’s offices, with a picture of the gathering posted on the “Google Walkout for Real Change” Twitter feed.
Demands posted in the account included improved processes for reporting sexual misconduct and resolving cases of harassment, as well as a commitment by Google to pay and opportunity equality.
The Google Walkout account said there were also walkouts in Tokyo, Zurich, Berlin and Haifa in Jerusalem.
CEO ‘deeply sorry’
The walkout call came as Google’s parent company Alphabet confirmed on Wednesday that Richard DeVaul, an executive accused of sexual harassment, left the company without an exit package.