4 ms·

Wait, the AWU is tiny. I remember the count being something like 2,000 union members out of 100,000 Google employees. It does not make sense for Google to negot

Wait, the AWU is tiny. I remember the count being something like 2,000 union members out of 100,000 Google employees. It does not make sense for Google to negotiate with it.

jojobas 3y ago
A union might span a particular office or a particular profession. There's no legal lower limit for the negotiation requirement.
yareal 3y ago
[dead]
bsimpson 3y ago
"Google refuses to negotiate with employee chess club."
cool_dude85 3y ago
Legally, they must negotiate with it, if indeed they are found to be the employer.
lokar 3y ago
That is not how collective bargaining works in the US.
- pclmulqdq 3y ago
  Collective bargaining in the US requires a vote of employees of an organization before a workplace union is recognized. That has not happened. The AWU is not popular within the company, and does not speak on behalf of all Googlers without that vote.
  - lokar 3y ago
    Unionization does not have to be the whole workforce. This class of workers did vote to form a union.
beepbooptheory 3y ago
Following this logic, why doesn't Google just, you know, fire them? They're probably many millions in the hole with legal costs alone with this thing. If it was really so insignificant a group to them, it doesn't make sense they'd get to this point. I think even if your point is valid, people over at Google are smart and understand that the future is long but precedent is eternal. And even then, there are in fact these annoying, antiquated laws around labor in the US. They kinda have to at least respond..
- jandrese 3y ago
  You can get in a lot of trouble for mass firing unionized employees without a really good justification. If they fire them all and then have to re-hire people to fill the positions that could be very expensive for Google.
  - behringer 3y ago
    Think back pay with treble damages for every employee expensive.
- yareal 3y ago
  [dead]
- pushedx 3y ago
  The lack of knowledge of labor relations rights in these comments is surprising to me.
  - behringer 3y ago
    The fact that people don't realize these rights were given to us in literal blood is also scary.
  - beepbooptheory 3y ago
    Ha sorry, I guess I should have put a '/s' or something? Just trying to point out the absurdity.
granzymes 3y ago
This group is not 2000 people. There are two (?) NLRB-certified bargaining units: 41 who work at Cognizant (the unit at issue in this case) and 119 who work at Accenture (although apparently 80 of those were later laid off). The remainder of AWU is people who have put their name on a spreadsheet but have not voted in a union via an NLRB election. The only way to have the legal right to force an employer to bargain with you is to have an NLRB election (or the employer voluntarily recognizes the union). Google has a legal duty to negotiate in good faith with the 41 Cognizant employees now that the NLRB has found them to be a joint employer. That's true regardless of how small the bargaining unit is. The NLRB found that Google controls essential features of these workers' jobs, which means Google needs to appear at the bargaining table. However, Google is allowed to appeal that finding before it takes effect, which will likely take at least a year in the Federal courts.
- yareal 3y ago
  Do not confuse union members with "people who elected their unit to become union represented". You can join a workers union and not have it be recognized by the company. You have fewer legal powers if you go that route, but you can still be a union. AWU has, iirc, 1500-2000 people. Of those, some small number have voted to force Google to legally recognize the union. The concepts are separate, but related.

Wait, the AWU is tiny. I remember the count being something like 2,000 union members out of 100,000 Google employees. It does not make sense for Google to negotiate with it.

jojobas 3y ago

A union might span a particular office or a particular profession. There's no legal lower limit for the negotiation requirement.

yareal 3y ago

[dead]

bsimpson 3y ago

"Google refuses to negotiate with employee chess club."

cool_dude85 3y ago

Legally, they must negotiate with it, if indeed they are found to be the employer.

lokar 3y ago

That is not how collective bargaining works in the US.

pclmulqdq 3y ago
Collective bargaining in the US requires a vote of employees of an organization before a workplace union is recognized. That has not happened. The AWU is not popular within the company, and does not speak on behalf of all Googlers without that vote.
- lokar 3y ago
  Unionization does not have to be the whole workforce. This class of workers did vote to form a union.

beepbooptheory 3y ago

Following this logic, why doesn't Google just, you know, fire them? They're probably many millions in the hole with legal costs alone with this thing. If it was really so insignificant a group to them, it doesn't make sense they'd get to this point. I think even if your point is valid, people over at Google are smart and understand that the future is long but precedent is eternal. And even then, there are in fact these annoying, antiquated laws around labor in the US. They kinda have to at least respond..

jandrese 3y ago
You can get in a lot of trouble for mass firing unionized employees without a really good justification. If they fire them all and then have to re-hire people to fill the positions that could be very expensive for Google.
- behringer 3y ago
  Think back pay with treble damages for every employee expensive.
yareal 3y ago
[dead]
pushedx 3y ago
The lack of knowledge of labor relations rights in these comments is surprising to me.
- behringer 3y ago
  The fact that people don't realize these rights were given to us in literal blood is also scary.
- beepbooptheory 3y ago
  Ha sorry, I guess I should have put a '/s' or something? Just trying to point out the absurdity.

granzymes 3y ago

This group is not 2000 people. There are two (?) NLRB-certified bargaining units: 41 who work at Cognizant (the unit at issue in this case) and 119 who work at Accenture (although apparently 80 of those were later laid off). The remainder of AWU is people who have put their name on a spreadsheet but have not voted in a union via an NLRB election. The only way to have the legal right to force an employer to bargain with you is to have an NLRB election (or the employer voluntarily recognizes the union). Google has a legal duty to negotiate in good faith with the 41 Cognizant employees now that the NLRB has found them to be a joint employer. That's true regardless of how small the bargaining unit is. The NLRB found that Google controls essential features of these workers' jobs, which means Google needs to appear at the bargaining table. However, Google is allowed to appeal that finding before it takes effect, which will likely take at least a year in the Federal courts.

yareal 3y ago
Do not confuse union members with "people who elected their unit to become union represented". You can join a workers union and not have it be recognized by the company. You have fewer legal powers if you go that route, but you can still be a union. AWU has, iirc, 1500-2000 people. Of those, some small number have voted to force Google to legally recognize the union. The concepts are separate, but related.