Most literally  union and the labor union means an organized group of workers who unite to make decisions about conditions affecting their work. The union is backed by the government and therefore can allow for higher pay, better benefits, a say of mind. But at the end of the day unions work like democracies. They hold elections for officers who make decisions on behalf of members, giving workers more power on the job. Union for the North is taken from the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, which was the document signed by the original 13 colonies after independence from Great Britain was declared in 1776. Why might one join the union if not anything listed so far, it might be an effort to set or put motion to some sort of change or action.

The union is still able to be standing and have an array of life applied into it is because people can get a sense of security and safety from the promises of the union. While every worker wants to be able to say that their job is set in stone the sad truth is not everyone can easily say that. With that stated the union can be that scapegoat and be their “ticket out” and help them feel a sense of security. In simpler terms, a union would reassure a job even when several thousand robots are being utilized in manufacturing, with continued growth expected for the use of robotics in the near future.

The collective buying power of union members is also used by Union Privilege to negotiate consumer benefit programs for working families.

Google employees broke headlines late Monday night, January 4^th 2021, as over 400 engineers, tech, and other workers formed a union, and said it’s been kept hidden for the past year as it was being formed. The newly formed union, The Alphabet Workers Union, has employees demanding that their employer come to the bargaining table to agree on a contract. However, this reportedly secret organized union coursed over a year to kept people safe, might all be for not.

The union was opened to all US and Canadian workers at Google’s parent company Alphabet. While including full-time employees, temporary workers, vendors, and other companies/contractors. As time progressed workers of said union commented by saying that it’s primarily an effort to give structure and longevity to activism at Google, rather than to negotiate for a contract.

In addition, the Alphabet Workers Union is a self-titled minority union that represents a fraction of the company’s colossal number of 260,000 full-time employees and contractors.

Employees of the union make up a large “shadow” workforce at Google, surpassing direct Google employees by around 135,000 to 115,000. Although also in 2019, a small group of such contractors formed a union in Pittsburgh. Keeping with the 2019 trend,  C.W.A. organizers began meeting with Google employees to discuss a union drive, workers who attended the meetings said. However, several Google employees with past experience of starting/organized petitions and protests at the company said, that they had declined to join because they worried that the effort had sidelined experienced organizers and played down the risks of organizing as it recruited members. Although some employees were receptive and signed cards to officially join the union last summer, In December, the Alphabet Workers Union held elections to select a seven-person executive council.

Union leaders wrote,

“We’re building on years of organizing efforts at Google to create a formal structure for workers,” and additionally adding that so far 226 employees had signed union cards with the Communications Workers of America.

As social and political issues were developing, the Alphabet Workers Union came from a year of hiding and aims to give structure and longevity to activism at Google rather than to negotiate for a contract. First pushes of the group came with over 400 workers joining and demands of their employer coming to the bargaining table to agree on a contract. As the self-called minority union makes up a dimple of the company’s 260,000 full-time employees and contractors, it sure did start a pact for change within the Google employees.