Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, 4,000 of people that work in Google’s cafeterias have joined unions, in response to a new report in The Washington Post. According to the report, “about 90 percent of total food services workers at Google” are actually unionized. 

That quantity is especially important as the corporate’s cafeterias, like a lot of its friends, are overwhelmingly staffed by contract employees who don’t get the identical advantages as full-time staff. Contractors throughout the corporate have pushed for and elevated in latest months.

Cafeteria employees at Google’s Atlanta workplace may quickly be the most recent to affix the ranks of unionized employees. Workers employed by a contracting agency referred to as Sodexo reportedly informed their supervisor they plan to unionize, and Sodexo stated they might not block the transfer if “a majority” of employees supported it.

It’s unclear when an official settlement could also be reached however a spokesperson for Unite Here, the union representing Google’s cafeteria employees, informed The Post they had been “hopeful that we can quickly reach an agreement on a union contract.” Other cafeteria employees at Google have already seen important advantages since becoming a member of Unite Here. According to The Post, “the average unionized worker at a Google cafeteria makes $24 an hour, pays little to nothing for health insurance and has access to a pension plan.” By distinction, the Sodexo employees in Atlanta make $15 an hour and may spend “hundreds” on medical insurance.