Google employees submit 4,500-signature petition seeking layoff protections amid AI spending surge

A growing number of Google employees are pushing back against continued workforce reductions, arguing that a company enjoying record financial success should do more to protect its staff as it accelerates investment in artificial intelligence.

On Thursday, members of the Alphabet Workers Union delivered a petition carrying more than 4,500 employee signatures to Google chief executive Sundar Pichai's office at the company's California headquarters. The document calls for stronger safeguards against layoffs, including improved severance packages and greater transparency around workforce decisions.

The move comes as technology companies continue reshaping their organisations to prioritise AI development, with many reducing headcount while committing billions of dollars to new infrastructure, research and computing capacity.

Speaking outside Google's headquarters after the petition was submitted, Alphabet Workers Union president and Google software engineer Parul Koul argued that the company's financial position does not justify ongoing job cuts.

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"Make no mistake: this is a company that is enjoying massive, unprecedented success," Koul said, according to The Guardian. Referring to Alphabet's market value, she added that the company had reached a valuation of roughly $4 trillion after quadrupling over the past six years. "These layoffs and cuts are not difficult decisions, but simply profit being put over the people that make this company run."

According to Koul, employees attempting to deliver the petition received little engagement from company representatives. The document was ultimately handed to a staff member in Pichai's office, who said it would be passed on to the CEO. Koul described it as the largest collective piece of employee feedback Google has received on the issue of job security.

Union seeks stronger protections against layoffs

The petition outlines several measures that workers believe should become standard practice before compulsory job cuts take place.

Among the demands are guaranteed severance packages, voluntary buyout programmes before mandatory redundancies across all product divisions, and the option for departing employees to receive severance as an extended period of paid leave instead of a lump-sum payment.

Union members are also calling for changes to Google's performance review system. They argue that existing evaluations rely too heavily on quota-based assessments rather than individual merit, creating additional pressure during periods of organisational restructuring.

The demonstration also revisited Alphabet's large-scale layoffs in 2023, with employees criticising previous workforce reductions and chanting slogans condemning the company's approach to cost-cutting.

Google has not publicly linked its recent layoffs to artificial intelligence initiatives. However, the company has continued reducing parts of its workforce while simultaneously increasing investment in AI development.

In recent months, Google Cloud reportedly eliminated additional roles, while the company also reduced the number of managers overseeing smaller teams. During Alphabet's latest earnings call, Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi identified AI as one of the company's primary investment priorities, saying hiring and spending would continue in that area alongside increased marketing support.

Meanwhile, the head of Google's DeepMind division previously told Wired that companies seeking to replace software developers with AI demonstrate "a lack of imagination", suggesting AI should complement rather than replace skilled employees.

AI reshapes labour tensions across Silicon Valley

Google's internal campaign reflects broader concerns spreading across the technology industry as companies embrace AI while reorganising their workforces.

Just a day before the Google petition became public, dozens of Meta employees filed a lawsuit alleging the social media company used AI systems to identify workers for mass layoffs. The plaintiffs claim the technology disproportionately targeted employees who had requested protected leave, maternity leave or disability accommodations.

Meta has rejected those allegations, with a company spokesperson stating that the claims "lack merit and are not based on facts."

The dispute highlights a growing divide within Silicon Valley. While technology companies argue AI will unlock new opportunities and improve productivity, many employees fear the same technology is accelerating workforce reductions without corresponding safeguards. As AI becomes central to corporate strategy, debates over job security, transparency and the role of automation are likely to become increasingly prominent across the technology sector.