Google Unions
Enough is enough. With that phrase, Google’s parent company, Alphabet was confronted when workers demanded that there should be a union allowed. Under American law, a union is self-organized on the level of each company, so the union at Alphabet and other American unions are different from unions in other countries like Germany, where there is a union for the industry. So when enough was enough, Google and Alphabet workers created their own union. 200 members are not unionized with the Alphabet entity, and I’m curious to learn how those 200 members will make a difference in the life of over 100,000 employees.
Google has over 100,000 employees, as well as about another 100,000 freelance workers, contractors, and so on, and the numbers seem like they will continue to grow. So can 200 workers make a difference in the life of over 200,000 employees? We will see. The unionized employees stated that they were the ones doing the coding, the writing, the working, and keeping Google afloat, so they demanded fairness. Lessons learned for other organizations? Unions form because there is a feeling of unfair treatment. So, if your company doesn’t like unions or doesn’t want your employees to unionize, make sure to treat your employees fair. Fairness is the new catchphrase for 2021.
#328, January 2021, Google, union, fairness, Alphabet.