Google contractors allege they were fired for union ties

The cases appear to be the first in which Alphabet Inc workers were fired for their union membership, according to Parul Koul, a Google software engineer and the executive chair of AWU. — AFP

Contract workers at Google’s data centres allege that they were fired for supporting a union and faced retaliation after pushing for better benefits, according to a pair of complaints filed this week with the US National Labor Relations Board.

The Alphabet Workers Union, whose members include both direct employees and subcontracted staff for Google’s parent company, claims that two workers at a data center in Council Bluffs, Iowa, were terminated for discussing their working conditions and because of their affiliation with the labour organisation, according to documents viewed by Bloomberg.