In the book You Deserve a Tech Union, Ethan Marcotte addresses workers in the tech sector, urging them to form unions and offering examples and suggestions for building a coalition.
The development of recent digital technologies is compared to the rise of the sewing machine. When first introduced in the 1800s, this new technology was presented as a tool that would end poverty. Jumping ahead to a 1910 manual by the leading sewing machine company, Singer, any vision of a machine that “frees its users” was gone; the focus was solely on the pragmatic description of an efficient tool that increased labor productivity. In Marcotte’s book, the introduction of modern technologies—like the internet—is discussed in a similar way. Initially presented as a tool to connect humanity and reduce poverty and conflict, it has taken a very different turn.
The book’s central thesis is that we are seeing a shift in the tech labor market, particularly after the massive layoffs by Big Tech companies (see chart). Until a few years ago, tech workers mainly sought to improve their conditions by switching from one company to another. Now, there's a growing awareness of the need to act collectively by forming unions. In the U.S., companies that once resisted even the idea of unionization—like Kickstarter, software houses such as Glitch, and independent tech media like NPR, The Atlantic, and The New York Times—are seeing union movements. Even non-profit organizations such as Code for America, Change.org, and NAVA, as well as giants like Alphabet and Apple, are part of this shift.
The key issues these employees have raised—despite often being paid above average—include growing workloads, pay disparities for similar roles, fears of layoffs and restructuring, discrimination, and a lack of growth opportunities.
Marcotte’s definition of tech worker includes not only content moderators and software developers, but also call center workers in low-wage countries like India, Kenya, and Morocco. Rather than artificial intelligence algorithms, companies like Meta challenge workers through disunity, disrupting collective opposition and organizing efforts—including on platforms like TikTok. In addition to inequality, layoffs, and limited internal mobility, many tech workers have also reported racial and gender discrimination and sexual harassment.
Looking at the U.S. situation—where only 10% of private sector workers are unionized—Marcotte encourages workers to organize, including remote workers, to look at what can be done and how to overcome negative aspects.
His response is clear: no single employee can have certainty, only hope that things don’t get worse. Individually, there is no power to enact structural changes in working conditions. That’s why unions are the only path to real bargaining power, through three tools: collective contracts, the right to strike, and negotiations. A well-organized strike is crucial. A union's power also lies in forcing companies to transparently differentiate roles and pay, and manage layoffs fairly.
If power is divided between capital and labor, only an organization that represents workers will always have a voice. Executives are often well-compensated and in direct contact with ownership. That’s why building a union with contractual power to protect salaries is so important. Hence the answer is coalition: in the U.S., in Europe, in Kenya—everywhere in the world.
This is a translation of Necessità di Coalizione tra i Tech Workers from Bollettino del Coordinamento Ingegneri Tecnici, March 2024.