The U-Word: Why Software Developers Should Talk About Unions
summary
Argues that software engineers can solve ignored technical debt and burnout by organizing, citing historical union roots long before communism and Sweden’s 69% unionization rate as a working example. Describes concrete union functions — salary negotiation and legal counsel — plus management consultation and company board representation, based on seven years as union rep. Frames unionizing as a practical route to collective engineering voice rather than an ideological stunt.
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chapters (8)
- 0:00Introduction: What Is the U-Word?
- 0:55The Silence Around Unionization in Tech
- 1:56Technical Debt and Developer Frustration
- 2:40The Power of Collective Engineering Voices
- 3:01Why Aren’t We Talking About Unions?
- 3:46Historical Context of Unions
- 4:47Sweden, Unionization, and the Tech Workplace
- 5:14Closing: Speaking with One Voice
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