In a first, Google workers form union to take on Silicon Valley giants

In a first, Google employees have launched a union on Monday, marking a new era of activism against Silicon Valley juggernauts.

The Alphabet Workers Union aims to represent tech workers, temporary employees and contractors, a statement said.

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"We hope to create a democratic process for workers to wield decision-making power; promote social, economic, and environmental justice; and end the unfair disparities between TVCs (temporary, vendors and contractors) and FTEs (full time employees)," the website of the union said.

The union will not just voice out on pay and benefits, but also focus on ethical decisions taken by Google and will offer protection from arbitrary firings for activism.

The announcement comes at a time as workers of Silicon giants like Google and Amazon have raised their voice against a number of issues that include workers condition and firing of a Black techie.

During the pandemic, thousands of Amazon workers have organised drives over the condition and safety of warehouse workers.

Recently, Timnit Gebru, a Black artificial intelligence ethics researcher, was also fired by Google that led to a lot of criticism from Google employees.

"This union builds upon years of courageous organizing by Google workers," Nicki Anselmo, a Google program manager and union member, was quoted as saying by news agency AFP.

"From... opposing Project Maven, to protesting the egregious, multimillion dollar payouts that have been given to executives who’ve committed sexual harassment, we’ve seen first-hand that Alphabet responds when we act collectively."