More than 40 YouTube Music contractors will go on strike, a first for Google, according to the Alphabet Workers Union (or AWU). The action responds to an order to return to face-to-face work next week, something many of the workers say they cannot do. They are demanding a return-to-work policy that is “fair, flexible and does not threaten the safety and livelihood of workers,” according to an AWU press release.
The workers are part of YouTube’s music content operations team through Cognizant, a subcontractor to Alphabet, Google and YouTube’s parent company. Their jobs are to “ensure that music content is available and approved” for the platform, according to a previous AWU press release.
Objections to the return-to-office plan stem from pay and availability. According to AWU, contractors are paid as little as $19 an hour, making it difficult to pay for relocation, travel or childcare costs they didn’t have to pay when working remotely, rather than in an office in Austin, tx. .
An anonymous Cognizant spokesperson said Engadget that the return to office policy had been “communicated to [the workers] repeatedly since December 2021,” and that they had taken the positions “with the understanding that they were accepting office positions and that the team would work together in a physical location based in Austin.” Google did not provide official comment for this story, but the company told the National Labor Relations Board that it does not view workers as its employees. according Bloomberg.
The contractors are currently trying to unionize with the AWU, which filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board to represent the contractors in October. Last week, the AWU filed an unfair labor practice charge against Alphabet and Cognizant, alleging that the return to office was being used to “interfere with fair voting conditions required by federal law,” as put it by Sam Regan, one of Workers. Press release.
There have been previous organized labor actions at Google. In 2018, tens of thousands of workers demonstrated to protest Google’s handling of sexual harassment, spurred on by reports that there had been paid Android co-founder Andy Rubin $90 million in firing after he was accused of sexual assault. And in 2022, a group of Cognizant contractors working on Google Maps were able to delay their return to the office after threatening to attack.
