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[Draugoth]

Microsoft Corp. is converting a group of subcontracted temps into unionized employees, bucking an industry trend and expanding organized labor’s new foothold at the software giant.

In January, Microsoft agreed for the first time to collectively bargain with a labor union: ZeniMax Workers United, an affiliate of the Communications Workers of America that represented some 300 quality assurance workers at a Microsoft-owned video game studio. Union contract negotiations have been underway since April, according to CWA.

As part of those talks, Microsoft recently agreed that a group of 77 contract staff doing similar work would become employees represented by the union. Previously these people had technically been employed by the staffing agency TCWGlobal.

Some of the contract staffers’ roles were being terminated this fall, CWA said. Instead, 23 of them will get permanent full-time Microsoft jobs, with a 22% pay increase. The rest will get temporary positions as Microsoft employees, $2.75-an-hour raises and paid sick days and holidays. They will also receive copies of the Starfield video game they worked on, a perk previously denied to contract workers.

The union said it will continue trying to secure additional permanent jobs for Microsoft’s contract workforce.

Source

 

[adamsapple]

Great, good for them. Most companies don't offer any benefits for temps, like healthcare.

 

[deriks]

I don't really know how this work in the US, but if I could use the rules of union of here in Brazil, it's basically money for them instead of the employee

 

[SEGAvangelist]

What could possibly go wrong?

 

[analog_future]

Excellent news.

 

[Topher]

Probably part of a deal made with the CWA to get them to endorse the ABK acquisition as heavily as they did.

 

[Dr.D00p]

Great, good for them. Most companies don't offer any benefits for temps, like healthcare.

Civilised countries shouldn't need benefits to cover healthcare.

 

[POKEYCLYDE]

As someone in a union, they're great in some aspects and shitty in others. Job security and benefits are a plus. Everything around competitive pay is bad typically. Raises are standardized based on years of service, your talent and efficacy at your job means nothing. Doesn't matter if you're the hardest worker, the lazy people who have seniority will make more than you... though not by much. You also can't negotiate on behalf of yourself, which really discourages working hard.

 

[ElRenoRaven]

Great for them. This needs to happen for all their people working on their games.

 

[belmarduk]

Awesome news. Happy for the employees!

 

[M1chl]

Unions feels like a necessary part of big companies where 1 person is nothing. Good for them

 

[DeepEnigma]

What could possibly go wrong?

You'll never be able to get rid of the DEI and some other dead weights if this should spread.

 

[TransTrender]

Microsoft to Convert a Group of Subcontracted Temps to Unionized Employees...
To be fed to the Morlocks in the Azure server farms.

 

[StereoVsn]

Let me give MS one handed golf clap. Considering they fired 20K people while making about $80billion in profit.

Oh and bunch of folks they fired have been their Enterprise Support engineers. Needless to say their support took a deep dive.