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submitted 1 year ago by L4s@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world

YouTube Music team laid off by Google while workers testified to Austin City Council about working conditions::Some workers learned of the YouTube Music layoffs while testifying to the Austin city council about Google's refusal to negotiate with the union.

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[-] SuperIce@lemmy.world 93 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Cognizant, a professional services company that Alphabet contracted the YouTube Music team through, said in a statement that the workers were let go after their contract ended at its intended date, according to KXAN in Austin.

A spokesperson for Google told Business Insider that Cognizant is responsible for ending the workers' employment, not Google.

"Contracts with our suppliers across the company routinely end on their natural expiry date, which was agreed to with Cognizant," the company said in a statement.

Not sure how much of the fault is from Google's side here since the employees contracted from another company.

[-] JoMiran@lemmy.ml 104 points 1 year ago

I am not defending Google here, but Cognizant is trash. I run a firm of specialist and a bulk of our work is cleaning up after outfits like Cognizant , Infosys, etc.

All that said, firing a group of 43 workers that chose to unionize during an Austin City Council meeting as it was being live streamed is all sorts of spicy. Google and Cognizant fucked up.

[-] avidamoeba@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 year ago

How's that work, is there lots of hair pulling? Or are you able to charge an arm and a leg and set your timelines because the clients don't have much of a choice?

[-] avidamoeba@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 year ago

It's no surprise, after all Cognizant is the first letter in CHWTIA. 🤭

[-] radicalautonomy@lemmy.world 27 points 1 year ago

The National Labor Review Board ruled that Google was a co-employer of these union members and, thus, ruled that both Google and Cognizant had to come to the table to hammer out a bargaining agreement with them. Google refused. When this council resolution was put forth, Katherine McAden of Google Austin emailed the Austin City Council members on 02/28/24 to ask them to postpone the vote to "give Google, and the City Council, time to fully understand the direction of this item and potential local outcomes." The very next day (02/29/24), while two members were in the middle of testifying to the council, that was the exact moment Google fired the lot of them.

I don't see how much more open and shut you can get here.

[-] PigsInClover@lemmy.world 9 points 1 year ago

Thank you for this. This should be the top comment.

I wonder how the new Cemex framework affects this.

[-] yoz@aussie.zone 22 points 1 year ago

Lol corporate world is not for you my guy. They contract other companies specifically for this reason. Order cognizant to fire workers and when questioned , oooohh they were contractors. 🤷‍♀️

[-] Phoenix3875@lemmy.world 16 points 1 year ago

At least in the UK, if you work like an employee enough, the court can overrule the technicality of your employment status as a contractor and apply labor law protections.

[-] radicalautonomy@lemmy.world 8 points 1 year ago

This is exactly what happened with these union members. The National Labor Review Board ruled that Google was a co-employer along with Cognizant, and they ruled that Google just come to the bargaining table with these union members. They refused. They emailed city council members asking for a postponement of their vote to give them time to sort stuff out, and it was granted. The very next day, the fired the entire union out of retaliation for speaking to the city council voicing their concerns.

[-] redfox@infosec.pub 3 points 1 year ago

You have any idea the wide spread feelings on this?

It sounds like that's what we should be doing in more countries,.US.

[-] ShunkW@lemmy.world 11 points 1 year ago

Oh the US has tried to fix this issue multiple times. The end result was many of us getting laid off after 18 months every time because they couldn't extend our contacts any further by law. There's no reason for a company to convert a contractor if they're not required to.

[-] Pika@sh.itjust.works 9 points 1 year ago

that's because they keep going at it from a timeline POV; I believe if they made required work time slots as a limitation against contract work (i.e if you are required to work between x-y daily) this issue would be resolved. There's no real reason for many contract positions to be a static time slot, contractors are supposed to be fully flexible on their own time as long as the end product is correct and within SLA, thd only benefit to fixed scheduling is management level, so I think that would tip the scale onto employee instead of contractor

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[-] redfox@infosec.pub 3 points 1 year ago

Yeah, it's frustrating when people in turn can't find good medical insurance.

The trade for sometimes higher pay or flexibility in assignments doesn't work when you can't afford insurance or other benefits.

Assuming you were even being paid about permanent positions.

[-] ShunkW@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

Yeah it's really frustrating. I'm fortunately at a level where the contracting companies have to provide at least decent benefits to get employees. But contracting sucks. Often you're restricted in what you can do, causing unnecessary delays to getting software done at the rate the company wants.

I've been yelled at by upper management for not doing something I legally wasn't allowed to. No apology when an employee on the call pointed it out of course.

It's a shit show. But my market is fucked right now so I'm about to go get a job at a grocery store or something and figure it out I guess.

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[-] Virulent@reddthat.com 2 points 1 year ago

On the books, that is the case in the US too but it is almost never enforced

[-] Virulent@reddthat.com 11 points 1 year ago

Contactor staffing companies exist solely to get around employment regulations. Demonic industry

[-] Pixelemme@lemm.ee 10 points 1 year ago

Yeah I don't understand why Google is being blamed here. If the contact ended with Cognizant then it is upto Cognizant to find other projects for the people who were part of the contract. That's how it works with these companies. If CTS couldn't find work in other projects then it's on CTS and not on Google

[-] radicalautonomy@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago

The National Labor Review Board ruled that Google was a co-employer of these union members and, thus, ruled that both Google and Cognizant had to come to the table to hammer out a bargaining agreement with them. Google refused that order. When this council resolution was put forth, Katherine McAden of Google Austin emailed the Austin City Council members on 02/28/24 to ask them to postpone the vote to “give Google, and the City Council, time to fully understand the direction of this item and potential local outcomes.” The very next day (02/29/24), while two members were in the middle of testifying to the council, that was the exact moment Google fired the lot of them.

I don’t see how much more open and shut you can get here.

[-] Pixelemme@lemm.ee 1 points 1 year ago

I see. Thanks for this. Explains it more clearly. I thought the situation was more amicable than this.

[-] kalkulat@lemmy.world 10 points 1 year ago

Blaming another business? Hmmm. Sounds like Boeing's attempted solution.

[-] kescusay@lemmy.world 7 points 1 year ago

Damn it, what am I supposed to do with this pitchfork now?

But seriously, shitty misleading headline.

[-] GlendatheGayWitch@lemmy.world 31 points 1 year ago

If you watch the video, one of the union members is at the Council meeting speaking to the City Council and another union member walks up to him to inform him that they were laid off with immediate effect. The workers both seemed genuinely surprised that they were laid off.

[-] Clent@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago

Use it.

Don't be fooled by layers of bureaucracy.

As along as it lands in the soft belly of those in the owner class or their supporters, it has served it purpose.

[-] steakmeout@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

Take your dumb reddit shit back to reddit.

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this post was submitted on 03 Mar 2024
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