In a victory for YouTube workers, NLRB finds Alphabet and its subcontractor, Cognizant, are joint employers

In a historic victory for workers, last week the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) reaffirmed that Alphabet and its subcontractor, Cognizant, are joint employers, which means that both companies must bargain with YouTube Music workers who have organized to join the Alphabet Workers Union (CWA Local 9009). Alphabet is the parent company of Google.

The NLRB agreed with an earlier ruling that determined that Google exercises control, directly and indirectly, over YouTube Music employees, including on things like their everyday work tasks, performance evaluations, benefits, timecards, and more. This is a major milestone in the fight to prevent companies from avoiding responsibility by subcontracting work, as the NLRB considers revising the standard for determining whether or not companies are joint employers. Under the Trump administration, the NLRB had made it more difficult for workers employed by subcontractors to hold major corporations accountable for their obligations to treat them fairly.

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YouTube workers organizing with CWA win major victory at the NLRB (CWA, July 27, 2023)