Over 200 Google, Alphabet workers have announced plans to form a union

(Karachi) In a major move, over 200 employees belonging to tech giant Google and its parent firm Alphabet have announced to form a union as part of efforts to help and facilitate the workers, local media reported on Monday.

The step to set up union at Google and Alphabet comes following the creation of unions at tech companies like Kickstarter and Glitch early last year. Additionally, workers at HCL Technologies workers who contract for Google in Pittsburgh and tech company cafeteria workers in the Bay Area also formed unions last year.

The Alphabet Workers Union seeks to be open to both employees and contractors and will work in coordination with Communication Workers of America Union’s Campaign to Organize Digital Employees (CODE-CWA).

Approximately, 227 workers have so far signed on to support the union and they have all committed to set aside one percent of the yearly compensation to go towards union dues. Most workers who are part of the union are mostly based in offices in the San Francisco Bay Area and one in Cambridge.

Historic step

“This is historic—the first union at a major tech company by and for all tech workers,” Dylan Baker, a software engineer at Google, said in a statement.

“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,” he added.

Similarly, CODE-CWA union organizer Wes McEnany said, “You have an industry of workers — the new generation of workers and the industry, especially tech and games, has been growing exponentially with young people.” He maintained, "Some of them make a lot of money and are working at companies that do really bad things. I think they’re at a position socially where they’re like enough is enough.”

Labor issues

For the past many years, tech firms have been surrounded with labor issues. On many occasions, workers raised the issue that more than half of the people who work at Alphabet companies are contract workers and therefore lack many benefits.

Besides, workers also complained of issues regarding hefty payout packages to executives accused of harassment. Last year, the National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint against Google alleging the company violated parts of the National Labor Relations Act by surveilling employees, and generally interfered with, restrained and coerced employees in the exercise of their rights guaranteed by Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act.