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Google violated U.S. labor law by spying on workers who organized employee protests and then sacking two of them, according to a complaint filed today by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
The complaint names two employees, Laurence Berland and Kathryn Spiers, both fired by the company at the end of 2019 due to employee activism. Berland was organizing against Google’s decision to work with IRI Consultants, a company widely known for its anti-union efforts, when he was fired for reviewing the calendars of other employees. Now the NLRB has concluded that Google’s policy against employees viewing certain coworkers’ calendars is illegal.
“Google’s hiring of IRIs is a clear statement that management will no longer tolerate worker organization,” Berland said in a statement. “Management and their anti-union buddies wanted to send this message, and the NLRB is now sending its own message: unionization of workers is protected by law.”
Spiers was fired after creating a pop-up for Google employees visiting the IRI Consultants website. “Googlers have the right to participate in concerted protected activities,” said the notification, according to The Guardian. The company said Spiers violated security policies, a statement that damaged its reputation in the tech community. Now the NLRB has concluded that the shootings were illegal.
“This week the NLRB filed a complaint on my behalf. They found out that I had been unlawfully fired for trying to help my colleagues, ”Spiers said. “Colleagues and strangers believe I abused my role because of lies told by Google management when they came back to me in retaliation. NLRB can order Google to reinstate me, but it cannot cancel damage to my credibility. “
Google, once known as the happiest company in tech, has been in the throes of a scandal in recent years. The company paid former executive Andy Rubin $ 90 million following a sexual harassment investigation, which sparked a wave of protests in offices around the world. More than 20,000 employees and contractors participated in the walkouts.
Workers also protested the company’s decision to work with the Defense Department on Project Maven, an AI initiative that could help the United States improve drone strike capabilities. In 2018, more than 3,100 employees signed a petition urging CEO Sundar Pichai to step down from the project.
In a statement sent by email to The edge, said a Google spokesperson: “Google has always strived to support a culture of internal discussion and we have immense trust in our employees. Of course, employees have protected labor rights which we strongly support, but we have always taken information security very seriously. We are confident in our decision and our legal position. The actions taken by the employees involved were a serious breach of our policies and an unacceptable breach of a trust responsibility. “
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