Google is facing another complaint from its employee union. The Alphabet Workers Union has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board ( NLRB ), accusing Google of illegally restricting employees from discussing the company's ongoing search antitrust case .
The complaint alleges that the Alphabet-owned tech giant issued an "overly broad directive" to employees, instructing them to "refrain from commenting on this case, both internally and externally."
According to a report by The Verge, this directive was communicated in an email from Google's president of global affairs, Kent Walker , in August, following a court ruling that found Google to have an illegal monopoly in search. However, Walker’s email did not include “an outright prohibition on speaking about the antitrust case,” the report noted.
What the company said
In a statement to The Verge, Google spokesperson Peter Schottenfels said: “We respect Googlers’ rights to speak about their terms and conditions of employment. As is standard practice, we’re simply asking that employees not speak about ongoing litigation on behalf of Google without prior approval.”
The report also includes the statement of NLRB spokesperson Kayla Blado, who said that the board is investigating Google for potentially silencing employee discussions about its search antitrust case. This investigation, launched in response to a charge filed by the Alphabet Workers Union, could lead to a case before an administrative law judge. Meanwhile, Google and the Justice Department are scheduled for an April court hearing to determine remedies for Google's anticompetitive practices.
What Alphabet Workers Union said
Stephen McMurtry, a senior software engineer at Google and communications chair of the Alphabet Workers Union, expressed his concerns about Google's past actions and viewed them as a potential warning sign.
The report noted McMurtry saying: “I think that the company does have a history of silencing or retaliating against workers who speak about their working conditions or raise complaints with the company with things that they believe are wrong or unethical. So even if the language is a kind of corporate ‘please refrain,’ I think we can all see what’s happened to some of our coworkers in the past who have raised concerns about different issues.”
The complaint alleges that the Alphabet-owned tech giant issued an "overly broad directive" to employees, instructing them to "refrain from commenting on this case, both internally and externally."
According to a report by The Verge, this directive was communicated in an email from Google's president of global affairs, Kent Walker , in August, following a court ruling that found Google to have an illegal monopoly in search. However, Walker’s email did not include “an outright prohibition on speaking about the antitrust case,” the report noted.
What the company said
In a statement to The Verge, Google spokesperson Peter Schottenfels said: “We respect Googlers’ rights to speak about their terms and conditions of employment. As is standard practice, we’re simply asking that employees not speak about ongoing litigation on behalf of Google without prior approval.”
The report also includes the statement of NLRB spokesperson Kayla Blado, who said that the board is investigating Google for potentially silencing employee discussions about its search antitrust case. This investigation, launched in response to a charge filed by the Alphabet Workers Union, could lead to a case before an administrative law judge. Meanwhile, Google and the Justice Department are scheduled for an April court hearing to determine remedies for Google's anticompetitive practices.
What Alphabet Workers Union said
Stephen McMurtry, a senior software engineer at Google and communications chair of the Alphabet Workers Union, expressed his concerns about Google's past actions and viewed them as a potential warning sign.
The report noted McMurtry saying: “I think that the company does have a history of silencing or retaliating against workers who speak about their working conditions or raise complaints with the company with things that they believe are wrong or unethical. So even if the language is a kind of corporate ‘please refrain,’ I think we can all see what’s happened to some of our coworkers in the past who have raised concerns about different issues.”
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