Nine Google workers were arrested on trespassing charges after staging a sit-in at the company’s offices in New York and Sunnyvale, California. The protests were led by the “No Tech for Apartheid” organization and focused on Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion contract with the Israeli government and military for cloud computing services. Protesters, including Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian’s office, sat in for hours until their arrests. Google Cloud software engineer Cheyne Anderson stated his objection to Google taking military contracts, regardless of the government involved, as it can have a negative impact on those on the receiving end.
Google defended its work with various governments, including the Israeli government, stating that it does not engage in highly sensitive or military-related workloads. The demonstrations reflect increasing pressure from workers who oppose the military use of Google’s AI and cloud technology. This was demonstrated by the firing of a Google Cloud engineer who interrupted a keynote speech to refuse to build technology that powers genocide. The internal Google employee message board was also shut down after discussions about the company’s Israeli military contracts.
The protests come amid ongoing conflict in Israel, with Hamas carrying out deadly attacks and Israel declaring war on Gaza. The Israeli Ministry of Defense reportedly sought consulting services from Google to expand its access to Google Cloud services for surveillance purposes. Former Google employee Ariel Koren highlighted that attempts to suppress voices opposing the Project Nimbus contract have only resulted in more anger and commitment from the workers. The New York sit-in lasted several hours, during which workers were locked out of their accounts and offices, placed on administrative leave, and faced labor conditions concerns.
The arrested workers in New York and Sunnyvale expressed their discontent with their labor conditions, including harassment, intimidation, bullying, silencing, and censorship of Palestinian, Arab, Muslim Googlers. They also called for addressing the health and safety crisis faced by Google Cloud workers due to the potential impact of their work. Google responded by stating that physically impeding other employees’ work and preventing them from accessing facilities is a violation of their policies, leading to the engagement of law enforcement to remove the protesters to ensure office safety. The workers were released after a few hours.
Overall, the protests and arrests highlight the growing tensions within Google over the company’s involvement in military contracts, particularly with governments like Israel. Workers are increasingly expressing their opposition to such collaborations, leading to demonstrations and disruptions within Google’s offices. The company’s response to the protests and the subsequent actions taken against the workers further underscore the challenges faced by tech companies as they navigate ethical concerns and employee activism. The issue of military technology use in conflict zones continues to be a contentious issue, and the actions of Google workers shed light on the broader debate surrounding corporate accountability and social responsibility.
