eBay whistleblower says company torpedoed his career after fraud report

That year, the complaint alleges, a director in the division began soliciting personal favours from staff – including asking the worker to use his automotive engineering background to help the director’s son’s amateur racing career. The worker declined.

The director then brought in a former consultant who had previously had access to eBay’s internal data while working on a study for the division, the complaint says. That consultant left his consulting firm and started his own auto-parts business selling on eBay’s platform. According to the filing, the director then engaged the consultant as an external adviser to eBay Motors while the consultant simultaneously ran his competing operation – receiving what the complaint describes as “specialty pricing, waiver of various fees, directed sourcing” and dedicated eBay marketing resources that generated no revenue for the company.

The worker reported these irregularities to his direct manager and to eBay’s legal department in late 2010, the complaint says. The legal department later advised the consultant he could not hold both roles. The director’s response, according to the filing, was to hire the consultant as a full-time eBay employee reporting directly to him. The consultant’s side business allegedly continued to receive the same irregular benefits.

By early 2012, the complaint says, eBay’s legal department contacted the worker as part of an internal investigation into the director’s conduct. He provided extensive evidence, the filing states, and the investigation ended with both the director and the consultant being terminated for cause.

The worker stepped into the director’s role on an interim basis. Under his leadership, according to the complaint, the division delivered record 21% year-on-year growth. eBay awarded him a “Critical Talent Award” in 2012, recognising him as being in the top 1% of performers company-wide.