YouTube Music contractors vote overwhelmingly to unionize in landmark election

On Wednesday, a bunch of contractors at YouTube Music voted to unionize with the Alphabet Employees Union-Communications Employees of America (AWU-CWA). Out of the 49 employees who had been eligible to vote, 41 voted in favor of the motion, with the remaining eight abstaining. As of final yr, the employees had been already paying AWU-CWA dues however had been searching for bargaining rights. In March, the group gained a landmark legal victory when the Nationwide Labor Relations Board (NLRB) dominated that Google should discount with them to ratify their union contract.

Whereas Google vowed to problem the ruling, the outcomes of in the present day’s vote might have vital implications for the corporate. Offered the NLRB’s choice stands, Google might want to collectively discount with a bunch of its US workers for the primary time within the firm’s practically 25-year historical past. That’s one thing that might immediate different teams throughout the tech large to pursue unionization.

“After months of union-busting by Google and Cognizant, our YouTube Music members have simply gained their NLRB union election in a blowout victory and are able to convey each of their employers to the desk to win their fair proportion,” the Alphabet Workers Union tweeted.

Though Wednesday’s vote was months within the making, it comes after Google laid off 12,000 workers – or about six p.c of its international workforce – in late January. This week, the corporate shared its Q1 earnings results, reporting a web earnings of $15 billion. It additionally introduced a $70 billion stock buyback. In 2022, the yr employees at YouTube Music Content material Operations filed for union recognition with the NLRB, Google compensated CEO Sundar Pichai to the tune of $226 million.