The group and its supporters are advocating for five key changes. They want an end to forced arbitration in cases of harassment and discrimination; a commitment to end pay and opportunity inequity; a publicly disclosed sexual-harassment transparency report; a clear, uniform, and globally inclusive process for reporting sexual misconduct safely and anonymously; and promotion of the chief diversity officer to answer directly to the CEO and make recommendations directly to the board of directors, along with the appointment of an employee representative to the board.

Read: How women are harassed out of science

Sundar Pichai, Google’s CEO, sanctioned the walkout. In an email to employees on Tuesday, he wrote, “I understand the anger and disappointment that many of you feel. I feel it as well, and I am fully committed to making progress on an issue that has persisted for far too long in our society ... and, yes, here at Google, too ... In the meantime, Eileen [Naughton, the vice president of people operations] will make sure managers are aware of the activities planned for Thursday and that you have the support you need.”

We, Google employees and contractors, will walkout on November 1 at 11:10am to demand these five real changes. #googlewalkout pic.twitter.com/amgTxK3IYw — Google Walkout For Real Change (@GoogleWalkout) November 1, 2018

Of course, not allowing the walkout would have only further sullied the company’s reputation, and taking a public stance against sexual harassment in a post #MeToo era is hardly revolutionary. If the company truly wants to address deeper issues of sexism and harassment, meeting the organizers’ list of demands would be a start. And if employees want to force the company’s hand, they need to go further than a company-sanctioned symbolic walkout.

Just weeks ago, Google was forced to drop out of the running for a $10 billion cloud-computing contract with the Pentagon after internal revolt. In August, employees also protested after it was revealed that Google was developing a censored search engine for China. In a letter speaking out against the proposed partnership, Google employees declared, “We urgently need more transparency, a seat at the table.”

Not ok, Google. Sign making is underway in NYC! #GoogleWalkout pic.twitter.com/hMLKL0LHOz — Google Walkout For Real Change (@GoogleWalkout) November 1, 2018

Despite the fact that executives have repeatedly pledged to “do more” to work toward diversity, Google’s 2018 diversity report shows that the company is still overwhelmingly white and male. Without aggressive work from senior leaders, the corporate environment is unlikely to change. It’s telling that five out of the six organizers of today’s walkout were women and that the walkout originally began as a 200-person “women’s march.”

Mary Rinaldi, the founder of the Women’s Holding Company, a company aimed at helping female workers get legal advice, said that the PR attention the walkout received is a good thing, if interest can be sustained. “The #MeToo movement has uncovered all these things that have been happening in the shadows. It’s new for society to start accepting that this happens all the time; these aren’t one-off situations. The next step is to keep in the spotlight,” she said.