I'm not affiliated with either group and have no stake in this, but I figured I'd mention there's also a GoFundMe for the strikers. I won't link it directly because that may look like I'm pandering which isn't my intention. I just know there's a lot of support around here for unions in tech and it'd be a good way to put-money-where-mouth-is.
So the contractors are paid $19/hr. They're all remote it seems. They refuse to return to office because their $19/hr isn't enough.
Unless it was written in the employment contract that they could work from home, I don't see how the workers are in the right here.
All this will do is deter Google from hiring future contractors because they could behave like this. If Google didn't care about PR, I'm sure they could just fire them all and rehire office workers in Austin for $19/hr.
Strikes and organized labor isn't about what is legally required. Obviously Google has the legal right to ask this of them. It's just shitty and borderline abusive.
> All this will do is deter Google from hiring future contractors because they could behave like this.
Awesome, maybe they should hire people full time instead of contracting out the dirty work. Maybe they'll actually get access to healthcare.
