The You in Union: Real Talk About Collective Action
summary
Argues that tech workers can form unions that raise pay and benefits by 10–30% and that U.S. membership is about 11%; outlines a five-step organizing path: private outreach using IRC or Discord (never company Slack/email), form a steering committee, run an online union authorization card campaign, petition the NLRB, then negotiate; cites SEIU representing ~5,000 IT workers in healthcare, warns of employer pushback, advises meticulous documentation, use of Robert's Rules of Order, and realistic expectations about legal protections and retaliation.
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chapters (14)
- 0:00Introduction and speaker background
- 2:51What is a union?
- 5:19History of unions and labor movements
- 7:45Unions in tech and modern trends
- 9:08Why tech workers should unionize
- 11:17How to start forming a union
- 14:23Steering committee and demands
- 15:47Card campaign and NLRB process
- 16:51Negotiations and collective action
- 17:54Como’s organizing principles
- 21:49Legal realities and seeking help
- 22:31Robert’s Rules and organizing tools
- 23:15Handling opposition and anger
- 23:37Conclusion and call to action
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