Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, illegally cut off contract workers’ access to a spreadsheet about pay transparency, a union alleged in a complaint to the National Labor Relations Board.
In a filing Thursday, the Alphabet Workers Union claimed that Alphabet and two of its staffing vendors violated federal labor law, which protects employees’ right to discuss their working conditions and organize. By withdrawing workers’ access to an online spreadsheet comparing pay rates, the companies “interfered with, restrained and coerced” the employees, the complaint claims.
The treatment of contract workers, who became the majority of Alphabet’s global workforce in 2018, has been a flashpoint for activism at the company and a major focus for the AWU, part of the Communications Workers of America. The AWU has signed up both Alphabet employees and subcontracted staff as members.
