On October 30, the Alphabet Workers Union (AWU) filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) alleging that Google management asked employees to "avoid" discussing the ongoing search antitrust case.
The union accused Google of sending an "overly broad directive" to employees asking them not to discuss the case. A complaint filed in August showed that Kent Walker, Google's president of global affairs, sent an email on August 5, shortly after US District Court Judge Amit Mehta ruled that Google had an illegal monopoly position, asking employees to "please avoid commenting on this case, internally or externally." According to Business Insider, Walker also sent a similar email at the beginning of the trial last fall.
If the NLRB determines that Walker's request could "suppress" protected collective activities, it would be detrimental to Google. Protected collective activities refer to actions taken jointly by two or more employees, such as discussing working conditions.
"We respect the right of Google employees to talk about their terms and conditions of employment," said Peter Schottenfels, a Google spokesperson, in a statement. "As a standard practice, we simply ask employees not to speak on behalf of Google about ongoing litigation without prior approval."
If the NLRB decides to take up the case, it may take some time to resolve. The regional office will first investigate the allegations to determine whether to proceed. NLRB spokesperson Kayla Blado said that its Oakland office is investigating the allegations filed on August 15. The NLRB said it typically takes 7 to 14 weeks to determine the reasonableness of the allegations, and if the government chooses to proceed with the investigation, the case may be initiated before an administrative law judge.
Meanwhile, Google and the Department of Justice will return to court in April to debate what remedies the judge should impose to correct Google's anti-competitive impact.
