[jeffreybaird]

> Forming a union is a great tool—for marginalized workers. Unions are historically intended to protect vulnerable members of society, and we feel the demographics of this union undermine this important function. We're concerned with the misappropriation of unions for use by privileged workers, some of whom receive compensation more than twice the average income in NYC, in addition to flexible work from home hours, above-and-beyond industry standards for parental leave, 25+ days of paid vacation, a wellness stipend, a bike stipend, an education stipend, a weekly catered lunch, and a great deal of other benefits. We're already a radically thoughtful and ethical company with our PBC, and can do more to lead the way in the tech industry by providing an open environment that's free of hostility.

Because a company treats their employees well, they always will. And employees should just take what they are given instead of trying to get a seat at the table. Welcome to the brave new world of woke stools and scabs.

[freewilly1040]

It’s not a guarantee that collective bargaining will help privileged workers, and union dues aren’t free. The statement is a bit cheerleadery, but isn’t necessarily irrational.

[sct202]

Yeah, I used to work at a company with a mix of union and non-union sites, and the unions were good in a sense that the company standardized a lot of general union policies across sites. So the end result was the non-union sites had most of the pros of a union and none of the fees.

[xkcd-sucks]

The "the starving children in Africa would be grateful for this" defense

Also the "some of whom" ... Holy weasel words Batman!

[awakeasleep]

It's incredible the way they phrase the formation of a union as an attack on marginalized people.

But on closer analysis, I suppose things have always been done that way.

It's like saying that food stamps and welfare breed dependency when 80% of people in poverty are children or the elderly.

[veritas_veritad]

Not to mention, that's not how/when unions got formed. Unions, as a derivative of trade guilds, formed exactly under the conditions we are seeing today. The capitalists _needing_ in-high-demand skilled laborers. If you consider that unionization requires a large concession from capital, it makes sense that unionization can only form during periods when labor is strong.

Yes, of course unions help marginalized workers, but that's only because they have been put into place by powerful workers to help out when that time inevitably comes. Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis.

[newen]

I think you have a good point here. I see a time when programmers become somewhat replaceable and when the industry as a whole reduces benifits for programmers bit by bit. Currently, there is a huge increase in the number of freshmen joining the computer science department in the university I attended and I see it only growing. In the future, a computer science degree might become something like the biology degree and that's when programmers will feel the pain of not being high-demand skilled laborers any more.

[michaelchisari]

The use of "social justice" language to crush a union drive is manipulative to the point of insanity.

[newen]

I thought it was genius (and manipulative, of course). It feels like they are using language that is most persuasive to their employees.