A former Google engineer has filed a lawsuit against the company, claiming executives turned an apprenticeship meant for disadvantaged students into a fundraising scheme benefiting wealthy teens, then purged him for reporting it.
The suit lands as Silicon Valley continues to reckon with layoffs and internal dissent. Google has cut thousands of roles since 2023, and whistleblower claims add another layer of scrutiny to how the company manages departures.
Leilei “Sammy” Shan filed the complaint Tuesday in Santa Clara County Superior Court. He accuses Google of wrongful termination, retaliation, discrimination, and harassment.
At the center of the case sits a Google-branded apprenticeship program paired with a nonprofit. The nonprofit claimed to support underprivileged students. Yet Shan alleges most participants came from an affluent Palo Alto high school.
Shan reported his concerns to human resources on Aug. 29. Two days later, he received his first negative performance review in 13 years at Google. By January, he was laid off. His annual salary before termination: $666,000.
The complaint names engineering manager Ying Liu and an unnamed executive. Shan claims Liu placed her own child in the apprenticeship program. He also alleges Liu hired an unqualified vendor because of a personal connection, then asked Shan to invent a “false business rationale” to keep that vendor employed.
Shan’s attorney, Stephen Ilg, said his client “took the responsible step” by reporting suspected fraud. Google did not respond to a request for comment.
The suit describes a January layoff pattern where employees deemed “loyal” to the executive kept their jobs while perceived critics were cut. Shan also accuses Liu of treating Chinese employees differently and making age-biased remarks about younger workers being more committed.
HR reportedly found Liu “created a culture of intimidation” and issued a warning. Shan seeks restitution and punitive damages. A Santa Clara County judge later dismissed the suit with prejudice.
