I got nothing.
On Monday, a number of Google employees announced the formation of the Alphabet Workers Union. This move was aided by organizers from the Communication Workers of America, which deals workers in the telecommunications and media sectors.
This union is highly unusual, though. Normally a union is formed by recruiting enough employees to petition the state or federal labor board to hold an election which, if successful, gets them recognized and allows them to go to the negotiating table. Rather, they’ve seemingly eschewed the whole “collective bargaining” thing that a union is kind of supposed to have in favor of making a platform for their activism. Which is probably due to the fact that only about 225 employees (roughly 0.1% of Alphabet, inc.’s employees by some estimates) have joined. That’s probably a far cry from the required number to actually get a genuine union going.
This union builds upon years of courageous organizing by Google workers. From fighting the ‘real names’ policy, to opposing Project Maven,to protesting the egregious, multi-million dollar payouts that have been given to executives who’ve committed sexual harassment, we’ve seen first-hand that Alphabet responds when we act collectively. Our new union provides a sustainable structure to ensure that our shared values as Alphabet employees are respected even after the headlines fade.
Nicki Anselmo, Program Manager
And, indeed if you poke around their site, it’s probably what you’re expecting. And by that I mean it’s done up in light mode. And also, that they’re focused on being a “conscience” to Google rather than, you know, a union. Nonetheless, they’re open to all employees of Alphabet, inc., including the various non-full-time employees classified as temporary employees, contractors, or vendors.
This is historic—the first union at a major tech company by and for all tech workers. We will elect representatives, we will make decisions democratically, we will pay dues, and we will hire skilled organizers to ensure all workers at Google know they can work with us if they actually want to see their company reflect their values.
Dylan Baker, Software Engineer
As to where this will go, it’s anyone’s guess. Google proper has yet to make any sort of announcement about it.
Source: Gamespot
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