Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Google Workers Form New Labor Union, a Tech Industry Rarity
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
January 4, 2021

Share

A group of Google engineers announced Monday they have formed a union, creating a rare foothold for the labor movement in the tech industry.

About 225 employees at Google and its parent company Alphabet are the first dues-paying members of the Alphabet Workers Union. They represent a fraction of Alphabet’s workforce, far short of the threshold needed to get formal recognition as a collective bargaining group in the U.S.

But the new union, which will be affiliated with the larger Communication Workers of America, says it will serve as a “structure that ensures Google workers can actively push for real changes at the company.” Its members say they want more of a voice not just on wages, benefits and protections against discrimination and harassment but also broader ethical questions about how Google pursues its business ventures.

Google didn’t immediately return an emailed request for comment Monday.

Unionization campaigns haven’t historically been able to gain much traction among elite tech workers, who earn big salaries and other perks like free food and shuttle rides to work. But workplace activism at Google and other big tech firms has grown in recent years as employers call for better handling of workplace sexual harassment and discrimination, opposition to Trump administration policies and avoiding harmful uses of the products they’re helping to build and sell.

“One of the reasons why it’s taken a while for workers to get to this point is because the leaders of these companies did a good job of convincing workers they were these benevolent folks who were going to provide for them, kind of a paternalistic model,” said Beth Allen, communications director at the CWA.

“That got them a long way,” Allen said, but workers have increasingly realized they need “to come together and build power for themselves and have a voice in what’s going on.”

The National Labor Relations Board typically recognizes petitions to form new unions when they get interest from at least 30% of employees in a given location or job classification.

Allen said the Alphabet Workers Union is not currently planning to pursue official recognition as a collective bargaining group. Instead, she said it will work similarly to public sector unions in states that don’t allow public employees to bargain collectively.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

UP NEXT

Low-Income Compton Students Get $225M State-of-the-Art High School Campus

Fresno Police Arrest Suspect in Southwest Shooting Through Valley Crime Stoppers’ Tip

15 hours ago

18 Injured in Knife Attack in Hamburg, Report Says

16 hours ago

Fresno County Man Killed in Head-On Collision Identified

A 20-year-old Raisin City man was killed early Thursday morning in a head-on collision north of Huntsman Avenue, according to the California...

14 hours ago

fresno
14 hours ago

Fresno County Man Killed in Head-On Collision Identified

14 hours ago

California Allocates $56 Million to Combat Youth Homelessness

15 hours ago

Let the Hunt for Fresno County Fruit Trail Delights Begin!

A Valley Crimes Stoppers tip and surveillance footage led Fresno police to arrest Andy Ramos on Thursday, May 22, 2025, who confessed to a May 11 shooting that left a man hospitalized in stable condition. (Fresno PD)
15 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest Suspect in Southwest Shooting Through Valley Crime Stoppers’ Tip

Police officers and forensic experts work at Hamburg's main train station, after several people were injured in a knife attack, in Hamburg, Germany, May 23, 2025. REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer
16 hours ago

18 Injured in Knife Attack in Hamburg, Report Says

A view of the White House in Washington, U.S., July 20, 2024. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt/File Photo
16 hours ago

White House National Security Council Hit by More Firings, Sources Say

Emergency personnel work at the crash scene on a street, after a small civilian aircraft went down in a military neighborhood in San Diego, California, U.S. May 22, 2025. REUTERS/Mike Blake
16 hours ago

All Six People Aboard Plane That Crashed in San Diego Confirmed Dead

17 hours ago

Explore the Wild Side of Route 66 With These Natural Wonders

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend