3 ms·

You Deserve a Tech Union

2 points by erlend_sh 3y ago

shortrounddev2 3y ago
I would absolutely not join an Alphabet style union, which is not really a union and seems to exist only to coerce Alphabet towards particular political positions. They don't exist for real collective bargaining, they are there to shame Alphabet for taking defense contracts or working with ICE. In a sense, you could say that they are arguing for workplace conditions which avoid moral injury[1], but they don't do any of the classical union things like bargain for labor contracts or salaries. Even if they were a real union, I wouldn't want to join a workplace where my salary was tied to my years of experience rather than my ability to negotiate in an interview. The only benefit which I would want protected by a union is the ability to work from home. We've seen many tech giants over the last few years promise their workers they could WFH permanently, only to pull the rug on them later. I would want WFH to be in a contract and not to be punished or laid off just because I'm remote [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_injury https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_injury
- fragmede 3y ago
  Work from home, open office plans, conference room count, not using Microsoft teams, the kinds of snacks in the microkitchen, a limit on the number of meetings, no scheduling meetings for 8am tomorrow after 4pm, perf reviews at most once per year, a declared bonus and raise schedule, paychecks not being late, not getting infinitely diluted on next series raise; the list goes on.
  - shortrounddev2 3y ago
    Are you saying you WANT an open office plan?
    - fragmede 3y ago
      My personal opinion isn't super relevant, but they're not my favorite as they make it hard to do deep work. Though with work from home, that's less of an issue as it once was. Still if there was a union, its members could vote on such things and we'd find out the broader community's opinion of them, and make them go away, or only be forced to be at them for a limited time. Still, 1 day out of the week or every two weeks, I could see the collaborative boost of working side-by-side with your team to be positive for morale and productivity, but 5 of 5 days/week was definitely too much.
Bluescreenbuddy 3y ago
Do we also deserve an ad for a book?

2 points by erlend_sh 3y ago

I would absolutely not join an Alphabet style union, which is not really a union and seems to exist only to coerce Alphabet towards particular political positions. They don't exist for real collective bargaining, they are there to shame Alphabet for taking defense contracts or working with ICE. In a sense, you could say that they are arguing for workplace conditions which avoid moral injury[1], but they don't do any of the classical union things like bargain for labor contracts or salaries. Even if they were a real union, I wouldn't want to join a workplace where my salary was tied to my years of experience rather than my ability to negotiate in an interview. The only benefit which I would want protected by a union is the ability to work from home. We've seen many tech giants over the last few years promise their workers they could WFH permanently, only to pull the rug on them later. I would want WFH to be in a contract and not to be punished or laid off just because I'm remote [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_injury https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_injury

fragmede 3y ago
Work from home, open office plans, conference room count, not using Microsoft teams, the kinds of snacks in the microkitchen, a limit on the number of meetings, no scheduling meetings for 8am tomorrow after 4pm, perf reviews at most once per year, a declared bonus and raise schedule, paychecks not being late, not getting infinitely diluted on next series raise; the list goes on.
- shortrounddev2 3y ago
  Are you saying you WANT an open office plan?
  - fragmede 3y ago
    My personal opinion isn't super relevant, but they're not my favorite as they make it hard to do deep work. Though with work from home, that's less of an issue as it once was. Still if there was a union, its members could vote on such things and we'd find out the broader community's opinion of them, and make them go away, or only be forced to be at them for a limited time. Still, 1 day out of the week or every two weeks, I could see the collaborative boost of working side-by-side with your team to be positive for morale and productivity, but 5 of 5 days/week was definitely too much.

Bluescreenbuddy 3y ago

Do we also deserve an ad for a book?