Hundreds of Google Employees Unionize, Culminating Years of Activism

[ClubLevelVegan]

This is a very good awesome thing.

OAKLAND, Calif. — More than 225 Google engineers and other workers have formed a union, the group revealed on Monday, capping years of growing activism at one of the world’s largest companies and presenting a rare beachhead for labor organizers in staunchly anti-union Silicon Valley.

Hundreds of Google Employees Unionize, Culminating Years of Activism

 

[rareboy]

Glad to hear this has finally happened.

Time for amazon to give in as well.

 

[unloadonme]

Do people still belong to unions? Seems so 20th century.

 

[ClubLevelVegan]

Do people still belong to unions? Seems so 20th century.

No because work places like Walmart threaten jobs at the mere mention of them and have even shut down locations because of unions happening. Despite your comment, following any of these big corporations only show that unions are direly needed because of how much these companies get away with when it comes to their practices, not paying their workers enough, the safety of their workers and so on and so forth. There is no one to protect workers, and Human Resources in companies pretend that they're there for the worker but in reality protect the companies interest. People were forced to go back to work during a pandemic but practices to keep employees safe are severely lacking in places like Amazon and other big Corporations. I know someone who couldn't work from home, had to take 2 weeks off because people in their work place tested positive for COVID and their employer told them they wouldn't be paid if they didn't have COVID. That's absurd. That's 2 weeks of lost income for someone who had no choice but to work or they can't make their ends meet.

Better working conditions are needed in general, but especially when we have a pandemic that has seemingly no end in sight, not real relief coming peoples way and they need to work. You can look up any company, from retail, online services like amazon, to video game companies and there is countless reports of bad practices from multiple companies where at the end of the day the company doesn't face any or barely face consequence and the worker is the one that gets shafted.

 

[Kulindahr]

Glad to hear this has finally happened.

Time for amazon to give in as well.

And Walmart.

 

[72-Jay]

Sad to hear.

 

[cityboy-stl]

Sad to hear.

Why sad?

 

[Harke the Boeotarch]

Are Unions any good in the US?

 

[Kulindahr]

Sad to hear.

The only thing sad about it is that it's only a minority of Google employees.

Corporations are organized ownership to give owners all the advantages they can. Unions are the natural response, workers organizing to give workers al the advantages they can.

Now if in the U.S. both sides would see that working together instead of being adversarial would benefit both! If Page and Brin were really smart, they'd give the union a seat on the board.

 

[72-Jay]

Why sad?

Because unions should be being eliminated, not expanded..

 

[ClubLevelVegan]

Because unions should be being eliminated, not expanded..

Then what do you think should happen to protect workers and make sure work places/corporations don't abuse the working force as they already do?

 

[Kulindahr]

Because unions should be being eliminated, not expanded..

Only if corporations are also eliminated.

You can't give one side in an issue of fairness and justice the ability to organize and focus power and not allow the other side the same.

 

[Kulindahr]

Then what do you think should happen to protect workers and make sure work places/corporations don't abuse the working force as they already do?

The interesting thing is that the push to eliminate unions is in practice a push for big government: Walmart already learned it can pay its employees as little as it pleases because the government will make up the difference; eliminate unions and every corporation will do the same.

The anti-union position is just an effort to maximize profits on the backs of the taxpayers.

 

[Dominus]

Then what do you think should happen to protect workers and make sure work places/corporations don't abuse the working force as they already do?

I'm more interested in worker cooperative (worker coop).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worker_cooperative

Let me tell you why unions are just as bad as corporate owners and heads.

(1) Everybody thinks the owners have unlimited resources. Every company owner, every landlord, every entrepreneur knows what I'm talking about. As a business owner, I have to juggle between treating people well and not be taken advantaged of. It's a very delicate balance as everybody thinks I'm fucking rich. Last year, there was a time when I had $200 in the bank.

(2) No one is as careful with your money as you. Ever heard of this phrase? It is an age old adage that is 100% true. In my experience, workers never ever care about costs. Why should they? They don't pay for it. It's always someone else that pays for it. I recently evicted a tenant that ran the electric bill up to $500/month. I don't know what the hell he was doing to run up the bill that high, but after I evicted him and put someone else in there, the bill dropped down to about $120/month. Now, apply that to the sort of wastes the average worker do because, again, they ain't paying for it.

(3) Union bosses have a track record of becoming just as greedy and live luxurious lives as the corporate heads. And why shouldn't they? It is human nature to be greedy. I have said this many times before. You might remember it. I am not mother theressa. I don't strive to be an angel. My business isn't a charity. Human greed is a real thing. If you base your business model on the goodness of others, you are doomed to fail. And that is essentially what unions are: they base their model on the goodness of someone else.

Worker coop is a much better alternative. Because now everyone has a stake in the game. I have offered part ownership to a couple of my best guys and as soon as they found out the had to take some risks they turned it down. They would rather get a regular paycheck and have zero responsibility than actually have some skin in the game.

 

[Dominus]

Only if corporations are also eliminated.

You can't give one side in an issue of fairness and justice the ability to organize and focus power and not allow the other side the same.

I'm curious. What do you think of worke coop?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worker_cooperative

 

[Kulindahr]

I'm curious. What do you think of worke coop?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worker_cooperative

Worker co-ops are a pipe-dream useless in the real world. Walmart, Google, Century Link, BP Oil, and the like will never turn into anything remotely resembling a worker co-op/

Germany's model is the way to go: unions should have seats on the corporate board of directors.

 

[Dominus]

Worker co-ops are a pipe-dream useless in the real world. Walmart, Google, Century Link, BP Oil, and the like will never turn into anything remotely resembling a worker co-op/

Germany's model is the way to go: unions should have seats on the corporate board of directors.

If it's a pipe dream useless in the real world, how do you explain this?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mondragon_Corporation

As I said in another post, the problem with having union leaders on the corporate board of directors is you're banking on the goodness of their heart to have your best interest in mind. And as long as all the power are put in the hands of the few, they will always vote to give themselves insane bonuses while the rest of the company suffer layoffs and wage reductions.

 

[ClubLevelVegan]

I'm curious. What do you think of worke coop?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worker_cooperative

I am all for people owning the means of their own production, but in our current society I do not think this would work. Which is why in our current system I think Unions are our best bet in protecting workers and getting what they need from their employers in a Capitalist society. Unions are a part of a separate entity that are less likely be abused by the employer itself.

I am not claiming unions are perfect and aren't abused (what system in our society isn't abused) but I believe it is absolutely better than what is happening right now to the working class.

Worker co-ops are a pipe-dream useless in the real world. Walmart, Google, Century Link, BP Oil, and the like will never turn into anything remotely resembling a worker co-op/

Germany's model is the way to go: unions should have seats on the corporate board of directors.

Yep, exactly. None of these companies would go for it, they're not interested in giving the working class any sort of power.

The interesting thing is that the push to eliminate unions is in practice a push for big government: Walmart already learned it can pay its employees as little as it pleases because the government will make up the difference; eliminate unions and every corporation will do the same.

The anti-union position is just an effort to maximize profits on the backs of the taxpayers

Also agreed with this.

 

[Kulindahr]

If it's a pipe dream useless in the real world, how do you explain this?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mondragon_Corporation

As I said in another post, the problem with having union leaders on the corporate board of directors is you're banking on the goodness of their heart to have your best interest in mind. And as long as all the power are put in the hands of the few, they will always vote to give themselves insane bonuses while the rest of the company suffer layoffs and wage reductions.

That's one. At this rate of formation of successful ones, it will be the twenty-fourth century before they're a significant factor.

Show me a giant corporation that has switched to the model and I'll agree it isn't a pipe dream.

 

[Dominus]

That's one. At this rate of formation of successful ones, it will be the twenty-fourth century before they're a significant factor.

Show me a giant corporation that has switched to the model and I'll agree it isn't a pipe dream.

LOL not with this attitude.

Capitalism did not spring up out of nowhere from feudalism. It took centuries of experimentations, failed attempts, and much bloodshed. And during all that time, the feudalists did not make it easy and there were plenty of people who said it was just a pipe dream. No doubt, it will take socialism centuries of experimentations, failed attempts, and much bloodshed.

Just saying.