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Ifeoma Ozoma

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File:NIeq0FKa 400x400.jpg
Headshot of Ifeoma Ozoma
Ifeoma Ozoma
Born
Anchorage, Alaska
Alma materChoate Rosemary Hall
Yale University
Employer(s)Google
Facebook
Pinterest

Ifeoma Ozoma is an American policy expert and equity advocate. Her work involves tackling health misinformation and tech accountability. She is the founder of the consulting firm Earthseed, was awarded the 2020 Bold Prize, and is featured in the Root’s 100 Most Influential African Americans of 2021. Most recently, Ifeoma became a leader in NDA reform advocacy and co-sponsor of California Senate Bill 331 (the “Silenced No More Act”)  — a bill that prevents workers from being forced into signing non-disclosure and non-disparagement agreements that would limit their ability to speak about harassment and discrimination in the workplace. Ifeoma also published The Tech Worker Handbook, a “free online resource guide for tech workers who are considering making workplace complaints.”[1]

Early life and education

Ozoma is from Anchorage, Alaska. She attended Choate Rosemary Hall, a private college-preparatory boarding school in Connecticut. She was an undergraduate student at Yale University, where she specialized in political science and the Fourth Amendment.[2][3]

Career

After graduating, Ozoma joined Google, where she worked on public policy and was a government liaison. She spent two years at Facebook before joining Pinterest.

In June 2020 Ozoma and her colleague Aerica Shimizu Banks resigned from their positions at Pinterest because of alleged racial and gender discrimination.[4][5] They claimed to have been paid unfairly, faced retaliation when calling for change, and had their personal information shared by co-workers.[6] In the aftermath of the event, Ozoma and Banks were offered severance pay equal to less than a year's salary. A few months later, Françoise Brougher, Pinterest chief operating officer, was awarded a $22.5 million settlement for gender discrimination.[7][8] Although Ozoma and Banks did not have the same resources to pursue litigation, they said they were glad they spoke up, "we're not in a position that someone in the C-suite would have been. But our integrity means more than anything else, and if we can help other folks, we will."[7] In an interview with The Guardian, Ozoma described the settlement as a "slap in the face".[6] In 2020 she was awarded the Bold Prize, an initiative started by Sabrina Heri Issa that supports Black women in technology.[9]

In 2021, Ifeoma’s advocacy and work landed her on The Root 100, an annual list of the most influential African Americans in the fields of arts, community, business, entertainment, media and politics.

Ozoma is the Founder of Earthseed, a consulting firm that addresses health misinformation.[10] She served on the board of First Draft News and worked with the Brookings Institution Transatlantic Working Group on Disinformation.[11][12]

The Silenced No More Act

Ozoma is a co-sponsor of the Silenced No More Act. Her Pinterest fight led her to team up with California State Senator Connie Leyva, who helped draft the Silenced No More Act, a bill that prevents the use of NDAs in workplace situations involving any form of discrimination and harassment. [13] This legislation allows every individual in California to share information about discrimination or harassment they have faced on the job, even after signing an NDA.[14]

Sponsored jointly by the California Employment Lawyers Association, Earthseed, and Equal Rights Advocates, the “Silenced No More Act” (Senate Bill 331 or SB 331) is a bill that protects employees who speak out about discrimination at work, even if they've signed nondisclosure agreements. “SB 331 prevents workers from being forced to sign non-disclosure and non-disparagement agreements that would limit their ability to speak out about harassment and discrimination in the workplace,” - Senator Connie M. Leyva (D-Chino) (co-leader of the Silenced No More Act).

The bill goes on to read, “As secret settlements clearly play as much a role in perpetuating workplace discrimination, harassment and bias based on race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, etc. as they do related to sexual harassment or sex discrimination, The “Silenced No More Act” seeks to ensure that those who raise these complaints about wrong—and even illegal—behavior in the workplace are able to speak openly about their experiences.”

In August 2021, Senator Leyva’s “Silenced No More Act” was passed by the California State Assembly and in October 2021, was signed into law by California Governor Gavin Newsom, and is set to take effect on January 1, 2022.

In October 2021, Ozoma connected with Cher Scarlett,[15] a former Apple engineer who reported the company to the National Labor Relations Board and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).[16] Ozoma advised Scarlett in enacting similar legislature in her home state of Washington, who reached out to Senator Karen Keiser,[15] the senator responsible for the 2018 senate bills in Washington preventing employers from using confidentiality clauses to prevent victims of sexual harassment and assault from speaking out.[17] Senator Keiser's office confirmed she is sponsoring a bill for the upcoming session starting in January of 2022.[15] House Representative Liz Berry also confirmed directly that she was co-sponsoring the bill with Senator Keiser, saying, "No worker should be silenced from sharing their deeply personal story of harassment or discrimination in the workplace just because they signed an NDA."[18]

Nia Impact Capital

In September 2021, Ozoma, along with Whistle Stop Capital, Open MIC,[19] and Nia Impact Capital filed a shareholder proposal at Apple,[15] asking the company to assess the risks associated with the use of concealment clauses for employees who have experienced harassment and discrimination.[20] The proposal came following a less formal suggestion from Ozoma and Nia that the company refused, citing language in its Business Conduct Policy it claimed covered the request.[21]

On October 18, 2021, Apple filed a No-action response to Nia's request,[22] claiming that they do not utilize the types of concealment clauses in employment and post-employment contracts that Nia was referencing.[23]

On November 22, 2021, Nia filed a response to Apple and the SEC, citing that they had "received information, confidentially provided, that Apple has sought to use concealment clauses in the context of discrimination, harassment, and other workplace labor violation claims," in the hopes of forcing a shareholder vote around transparency on nondisclosure agreements at the company. Scarlett, the whistleblower Ozoma had guided in October for the Silenced No More Act, was revealed as Nia's source.[16]

The Tech Worker Handbook

In October 2021, Ifeoma launched The Tech Worker Handbook, a collection of free resources for tech workers who are looking to make more informed decisions about whether to speak out on issues that are in the public interest.

The handbook guides workers through what they might encounter in the legal process, how to approach the media, and information on how to navigate physical and security concerns.

The handbook includes research and resources from The Signals Network, an international nonprofit that encourages transparency and supports whistleblowers working with the press, and Lioness, a PR firm working as a conduit between employees with stories to tell and journalists, among others. The handbook was funded by the Omidyar Network.

References

  1. ^ Elias, Jennifer (2021-10-10). "Tech whistleblowers are having a moment, and one woman who's been there has found a new way to help". CNBC. Retrieved 2021-11-09.
  2. ^ "Ifeoma Ozoma". Festival Internazionale del Giornalismo. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  3. ^ Bort, Julie (June 15, 2020). "Two Black women publicly resigned from Pinterest saying they faced humiliation, retaliation and were passed over for promotion". Business Insider. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  4. ^ Duffy, Kate (December 16, 2020). "Pinterest's $22.5 million gender discrimination settlement is another example of how Black women are ignored, say senior women of color in the tech industry". Business Insider. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
  5. ^ Spencer, Erin (June 17, 2020). "Former Pinterest Employees Allege Racial Discrimination, Unfair Pay And Hostile Culture". Forbes. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  6. ^ a b Paul, Kari (December 18, 2020). "Pinterest's $22m settlement with executive is a 'slap in the face', Black former workers say". The Guardian. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  7. ^ a b Dickey, Megan Rose (December 15, 2020). "Pinterest's $22.5M settlement highlights tech's inequities, say former employees who alleged discrimination". TechCrunch. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  8. ^ Paul, Kari (December 18, 2020). "Pinterest's $22m settlement with executive is a 'slap in the face', Black former workers say". The Guardian. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  9. ^ "Introducing the 2020 Bold Prize Honorees". Introducing the 2020 Bold Prize Honorees. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  10. ^ "Speakers". Conference for Truth and Trust Online. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  11. ^ "First Draft welcomes new US board". First Draft. July 14, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  12. ^ "Platforms and the Election: An Autopsy (A November 19 Virtual Panel)". Mozilla Foundation. November 17, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  13. ^ "'No One Should Be Treated Differently Based on Their Identity': Ex-Pinterest Employee Ifeoma Ozoma On When To Break Your NDA". dot.LA. 2021-07-10. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
  14. ^ "She broke her NDA to speak out against Pinterest. Now she's helping others come forward". the Guardian. 2021-05-10. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
  15. ^ a b c d Woo, Erin (24 November 2021). "A Tech Whistle-Blower Helps Others Speak Out". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
  16. ^ a b Drange, Matt (23 November 2021). "Apple told the SEC it doesn't silence employees regarding workplace harassment or discrimination. New whistleblower documents show that isn't true". Business Insider. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
  17. ^ "#MeToo comes to Olympia as Senate hears sexual harassment bills". Sen. Karen Keiser. 2018-01-22. Retrieved 2021-11-24.
  18. ^ Love, Julia (2021-11-24). "Former Apple worker inspires Washington state measure seeking to curb NDAs". Reuters. Retrieved 2021-11-25.
  19. ^ "Shareholders Tell Apple: Using Employment Agreements as Gag Orders to Hide Discrimination and Harassment Is Bad for Workers and Bad For Business". Open MIC. Retrieved 2021-11-24.
  20. ^ "Apple Resolution". Nia Impact Capital. Retrieved 24 November 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  21. ^ Schiffer, Zoe (8 September 2021). "Apple refuses to make NDA concessions for workplace harassment and discrimination". The Verge. Retrieved 24 November 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  22. ^ McGee, Patrick; Temple-West, Patrick (27 October 2021). "Apple fights shareholder call for more transparency on forced labour". Financial Times. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
  23. ^ "Apple Inc.; Rule 14a-8 no-action letter" (PDF). US Securities and Exchange Commission. 18 October 2021. Retrieved 24 November 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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