A faction of Alphabet Inc's Google employees recently took action by submitting a complaint to the US labor board, claiming that Google wrongfully fired around 50 workers who were critical of the tech giant's cloud contract with the Israeli government. The complaint, succinctly presented on a single page, was lodged with the US National Labor Relations Board on a Monday evening, asserting that Google's decision to terminate these employees violated their rights under US labor laws to advocate for improved working conditions.
Earlier in the month, Google made headlines for announcing the dismissal of 28 workers who had disrupted operations at unspecified office locations while protesting against Project Nimbus. Valued at $1.2 billion, Project Nimbus is a joint cloud services venture between Google and Amazon to cater to the needs of the Israeli government. Additionally, Google disclosed that approximately 20 more employees were let go for protesting against the contract while inside the company's office premises. In response to these actions, Google released a statement on a Tuesday condemning the behavior of the terminated workers as "completely unacceptable," emphasizing that their actions had made other employees feel threatened and unsafe. The company asserted that all individuals who were fired were directly involved in disrupting activities within their buildings.
The protesting employees argue that Project Nimbus directly contributes to Israel's advancement in military technology. Contrarily, Google maintains that the project is not focused on highly sensitive, classified, or military workloads relevant to weapons or intelligence services. Zelda Montes, a former Google employee who was arrested during a protest against Project Nimbus, expressed that Google's decisions were designed to suppress organizing efforts and send a strong message to employees that dissent would not be tolerated. Montes, speaking on behalf of some of the dismissed workers through a collective called No Tech For Apartheid, argued that Google is trying to instill fear in its workforce.
According to the details outlined in their NLRB complaint, the aggrieved workers are seeking reinstatement to their positions, backdated pay, and a commitment from Google to uphold employees' rights to organize. The NLRB's general counsel possesses the authority to review and address complaints they deem valid. If settlement discussions fail, the general counsel has the power to escalate cases to administrative judges and a five-member board appointed by the US president.