Google has fired four employees, who have been called the "Thanksgiving Four", in what activists within the company call an attempt to "crush" workers' attempts to organize.
An internal memo indicated that the "Thanksgiving Four" employees were fired by Google due to data security and employee safety but the employees felt that they were being punished for "speaking out".
The firings were undertaken following a demonstration at Google's San Francisco office on Friday, which was attended by over 200 Google employees. Two of the four dismissed employees, Rebecca Rivers and Laurence Berland, spoke at the protest.
According to Google's Security and Investigations team, the fired employees routinely accessed information about other projects and employees inappropriately. The memo stated: "Our thorough investigation found the individuals were involved in systematic searches for other employees’ materials and work."
"This includes searching for, accessing, and distributing business information outside the scope of their jobs - repeating this conduct even after they were met with and reminded about our data security policies. This information, along with details of internal emails and inaccurate descriptions about Googlers’ work, was subsequently shared externally," the memo stated.
A statement representing the Thanksgiving Four and other organizing employees read: "Four of our colleagues took a stand and organised for a better workplace. This is explicitly condoned in Google's Code of Conduct, which ends: 'And remember… don’t be evil, and if you see something that you think isn’t right – speak up'."
"When they did, Google retaliated against them. Today, after putting two of them on sudden and unexplained leave, the company fired all four in an attempt to crush worker organizing," the statement continued.
In reaction to the incident, Senator Bernie Sanders tweeted: "This type of union busting is unacceptable. I say to Google: it is time to address the racism, harassment, and harmful contracts at your company and treat your workers with the respect and dignity they deserve."
