The woman behind a lawsuit alleging that BlackBerry’s CEO sexually harassed her and then retaliated against her for reporting the behavior is the company’s former chief marketing officer.
Lawyers for plaintiff Neelam Sandhu told a U.S. court this month that their client would voluntarily pursue the case against the Waterloo, Ont., tech company and its CEO John Giamatteo using her real name.
Mme Sandhu, whose LinkedIn profile shows she spent 14 years at BlackBerry through December 2023, initially filed the case under the name Jane Doe — a nickname often used in court for women whose identities need to be protected or are not yet known.
Judge Sallie Kim told Mme Sandhu and his lawyers in July that for the case to continue under the pseudonym, they would need to seek court permission.
M’s lawyersme Sandhu, Maria Bourn and Anthony Tartaglio, said in court documents that she had wanted to remain anonymous to “avoid further retaliation” before later agreeing to be named, saying Ms.me Sandhu hoped this would prevent harm to other women in the workplace.
Lawyers and a public relations firm representing Mr.me Sandhu did not respond to requests for comment Monday.
The case of Mme Sandhu’s case began in April, when she filed a complaint alleging that Mr. Giamatteo had “tried to get close to her” and “woo her” after he became president of the company’s cybersecurity division in October 2021.
She alleges that Mr Giamatteo suggested they travel together and, during a meal she understood to be a business meeting, told her how he dressed fancy when he went out with his daughters, so that people would mistake him for “a dirty old man” on a date with them.
In court documents, Mr.me Sandhu says she reported the behavior to BlackBerry, but she says she was subsequently excluded from meetings and heard that Mr. Giamatteo began telling staff he no longer wanted her at the company. She later said she was told she was being let go effective immediately as part of a restructuring.
The allegations have not yet been tested in court.
Mr Giamatteo and BlackBerry have disputed Mrme Sandhu, saying she lost her job not because she reported harassment, but because she was part of a wave of layoffs of more than 200 employees at the company as it spun off its cybersecurity business.
On Monday, company spokesman Anthony Harrison said in an email: “We continue to see no merit in the allegations made by the plaintiff and will continue to vigorously defend ourselves against them.” According to court filings by attorneys Bourn and Tartaglio, defendants BlackBerry and Mr. Giamatteo objected to Ms.me Sandhu.
M’s lawyersme Sandhu says she has struggled to showcase her skills to potential new employers because BlackBerry has removed content such as videos that demonstrate her competence and leadership.
They say potential employers may be wary of hiring someone involved in a sexual harassment and discrimination lawsuit against their former employer, and they worry that the stigma that accompanies a case like this could deter others from pursuing legitimate lawsuits seeking change.
When Mme Sandhu first filed her complaint, telling The Canadian Press she was pursuing the lawsuit because “silencing” her voice would not help other women in similar situations.
“I feel like I have a responsibility, especially as an executive, to help other women, whether it’s other women at BlackBerry or in the industry or more broadly,” she said in April. “I hope that if they can hear my story, it will give them strength.”