Google is reportedly laying off its Help workers subcontracted through Accenture after they voted to unionize with the Alphabet Workers Union-Communications Workers of America (AWU-CWA). Around 70% of the eligible 119 workers have signed union authorization cards.
Google staff stage a walkout at the company's UK headquarters in London on November 1, 2018 as part of a global campaign over the US tech giant's handling of sexual harassment.
Laying Off Goggle Contractors
At least 80 subcontractors working for Google Help reportedly learned they would be laid off after receiving notices last week. Currently, the group is engaged in a hearing with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to address the intricate matter of joint employment concerning contractors.
Last month, Casey Padron and other Google contractors publicly declared their intention to form a union. But Padron received an email last Thursday requesting her and her coworkers to a mandatory meeting that day.
Engadget reported that these Google subcontractors will lose their job in August. The group includes writers and graphic designers responsible for creating internal and external content for Google, including its Help support pages.
The subcontractors listed Google and Accenture as joint employers because of both companies' direct role in shaping working conditions. Aside from Padron, senior writer and member of AWU-CWA, Julia Nagatsu Granstrom, was also among the Google subcontractors affected by this situation.
"We had exercised our right to organize as members of the Alphabet Workers Union-CWA in order to bring both Google and Accenture to the bargaining table to negotiate on several key demands, including layoff protections," she noted.
Since they were joint contractors by Accenture, a tech consultancy, it seems they may not be entitled to the protections afforded by the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act.
The WARN Act, enacted in 1988, grants specific rights to laid-off workers. Last month, a group of workers contracted out to Google through Appen was fired after announcing intentions to unionize with the same organization, the AWU-CWA, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
However, they were eventually reinstated and promised backpay after filing Unfair Labor Practice charges with the NLRB.
Also Read: Former Google Manager, Laid-off Colleagues Build New Company
Unionizing With Alphabet Workers Union-CWA
According to the official website of AWU, workers are seeking better pay, increased paid time off, and assurances that they will not be randomly reassigned to other work outside of the scope of their normal responsibilities.
These workers experienced an abrupt and unceremoniously transferred to work on Bard as Google entered the AI race.
"Workers were thrown into the fray without adequate resources to navigate obscene content that appeared irregularly. Then after several weeks, they were abruptly taken off the project. This disruption was a motivator in workers' decision to organize," the AWU said in its statement.
According to Padron, the Google Help layoffs caught her off guard as they were constantly told by Google and Accenture management how impressed they were with the quality of their work.
"So the timing of these layoffs looks suspiciously like retaliation for our union formation," she told Engadget.
"If it's Accenture and Google's goal to demoralize us, they have failed. We are more united than ever and will continue to fight for this job that so many of us love and rely on," she added.
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