BlackBerry Ltd. BB-T is fighting court claims from its former chief marketing officer, who says she lost her job after complaining the company’s CEO sexually harassed her and then retaliated against her.
New documents the Waterloo, Ont.-based technology firm filed in a U.S. court this week allege Neelam Sandhu has presented no evidence that shows her departure was “discriminatory, retaliatory, or improper.”
BlackBerry maintains Sandhu was let go because of a major restructuring and not because she complained after John Giamatteo, who has since been named CEO, allegedly invited her to dinner, caressed her hand and tried to put his arm around her waist.
Sandhu, who worked for BlackBerry for just shy of 15 years, said after she reported the behaviour, she was cut out of meetings by Giamatteo, who allegedly told her “it is important that you be nice to me, as I know a lot of people in the industry/have a large network so it could impact you negatively if you are not nice to me.”
Sandhu was terminated in December, 2023, and launched a case in California against her former employer in April, 2024. She originally pursued the case under the name Jane Doe but dropped the pseudonym after a judge said she needed to seek permission to use the moniker.
None of her allegations, or BlackBerry’s, have been tested in court.
BlackBerry has said Sandhu’s claims have no merit, are filled with “falsehoods and mischaracterizations” and “fall well short of conduct that amounts to sexual harassment or discrimination.”
The new filings from BlackBerry are meant to oppose Sandhu’s recent move to paint her interactions with Giamatteo as part of a broader pattern where at least three women were allegedly fired after reporting the tech firm had a “boys’ club” culture.
BlackBerry now says she has no basis to draw similarities between the other women and herself, and points out several of the “scattered anecdotes” she shared about six other employees were incorrect.
For example, one of them told lawyers during discovery that she left voluntarily and another did not mention any retaliation, BlackBerry said.
The company argued the court should not treat the handful of experiences Sandhu references as proof of a pattern and hinted that it’s not unusual for people who depart companies to feel disgruntled.
“At a large corporation – particularly one undergoing contraction – there will always be former employees with negative views about the company,” BlackBerry said.
The filing came as the company is asking the court for a summary judgment. Summary judgments are requested by parties in legal disputes when they want a court to rule without having a full trial.
A judge has already tossed out Sandhu’s hostile work environment and wage discrimination claims, but her gender discrimination, retaliation and whistleblower retaliation claims remain before the court.