Parul Koul and Alphabet Workers Union members delivered a petition to Sundar Pichai demanding better job security and layoff protections for Google employees.
Parul Koul, president of the Alphabet Workers Union, led a group of over 100 employees to the Google headquarters in Mountain View to deliver a petition to CEO Sundar Pichai. The document, signed by more than 4,500 workers, requests specific protections against the ongoing wave of layoffs across the tech industry. The petition calls for guaranteed severance packages, buyout options before mandatory cuts, and the ability to take severance as extended paid leave. Additionally, workers are seeking to replace performance ratings based on quotas with a system based on merit. Parul Koul noted that while Google has seen massive success and a $4 trillion valuation, the current layoffs prioritize profit over the people who run the company. The demonstration comes as Google, along with rivals like Meta and Microsoft, continues to restructure its workforce to accommodate heavy investments in artificial intelligence. Workers expressed that greater job security would foster a less fearful environment, allowing for better innovation and long-term productivity. Google has not yet issued an official response to the demands.