Google drops engineering residency after protests over ‘inequities’

Alphabet Inc’s Google plans to shut down a long-running program aimed at entry-level engineers from underrepresented backgrounds after participants said it enforced “systemic pay inequities,” according to internal correspondence seen by Reuters.

Google confirmed it was replacing the Engineering Residency with a new initiative, saying it is “always evaluating programs to ensure they evolve and adapt over time to meet the needs of our employees.”

Google last year pledged to improve retention for underrepresented employee groups.

Critics have long argued that Google and its tech industry peers favor white, Asian and male workers in hiring, promotions and pay. Companies have grown more attuned to concerns about workforce diversity since the Black Lives Matter protests a year ago.