The Department of Labor has recently expressed concerns that Google’s strict confidentiality agreements have discouraged employees from coming forward in an investigation of the corporation’s alleged wage inequality. This comes as a part of the government’s half year investigation into a possible gender wage gap. Even after Google was ordered by a judge to hand over salary records and employee information, which are normally kept confidential, employees have been reluctant to talk to the government due to Google’s extreme confidentiality agreements. Google has consistently denied the allegations of discrimination, and further stated that the company’s policies make it clear that employees are allowed to raise concerns about workplace matters. However, this is a problem at large within Silicon Valley, where critics say rules are so strict that employees do not come forward with concerns about discrimination or harassment even when they are legally allowed to do so.
See "Google's confidentiality rules discourage whistleblowers, US labor official warns", Sam Levin, The Guardian, July 19, 2017