In May, DeepMind employees formally requested that Google recognize the Communication Workers Union and Unite the Union as their collective bargaining representatives. While the company eventually declined this specific request, it did consent to participate in third-party arbitrated negotiations. The inaugural meeting took place this Wednesday, involving union officials, DeepMind staff spearheading the movement, a third-party arbitrator, and representatives from the DeepMind human resources department. Those advocating for the union were left deeply frustrated by the notable absence of any high-level leadership figures from DeepMind.
Stalled Progress in Preliminary Talks
John Chadfield, a CWU officer present at the session, argued that the lack of senior management presence at the opening stage serves as a clear indicator that the company is not approaching the matter in good faith. He characterized the event as a mere time-wasting exercise and asserted that the negotiations have stalled almost immediately. Conversely, Google DeepMind spokesperson Al Verney insisted that the talks have not stalled. He explained that the initial procedural step is defining the scope of union representation, and the parties reached an agreement on the next steps to address this. Verney maintained that the appropriate representatives were indeed in attendance at the meeting.
HR Department Under Fire
During the session, a DeepMind staffer read a prepared letter on behalf of colleagues supporting the union push. The statement claimed that instead of engaging in meaningful dialogue regarding employee concerns, Google DeepMind management has treated them as a burden to be offloaded to the human resources department. According to multiple individuals familiar with the meeting, the employee reading this statement was interrupted twice by HR representatives. The letter further alleged that Google has attempted to stifle open discussion by reconfiguring or shutting down internal chat platforms and preventing staff from responding to company-wide messages regarding the unionization effort. Employees attempting to circumvent these restrictions were allegedly reprimanded by HR.
A DeepMind employee involved in drafting the letter, who requested anonymity due to concerns about their authorization to speak, claimed that these moves were clearly intended to intimidate staff and follow established union-busting tactics. In response, Verney stated that the company remains committed to engaging constructively in the process and maintaining open dialogue. He added that the company continues to provide employees with various other channels to voice their views on topics outside of these negotiations.
Ethics and Militarization Concerns
The push to unionize at DeepMind gained momentum in February 2025, following the decision by Google’s parent company, Alphabet, to remove a pledge from its ethics guidelines that forbade using AI for surveillance or weapons development. A second DeepMind employee, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, noted that those ethical principles were a primary reason they chose to join the company in the first place, and their removal caused significant unrest. Employees across the AI sector have grown increasingly concerned about the potential militarization of their work. In late February, staff from both DeepMind and OpenAI signed a letter supporting Anthropic after the US Department of Defense attempted to label the lab a supply chain risk for its refusal to allow its tech in autonomous weapons.
Pentagon Contracts and Government Ties
In April, reports surfaced that Google had finalized a deal permitting the Pentagon to utilize its AI for various government purposes. Approximately 600 US-based Google employees signed a letter protesting the permissive nature of this agreement. The US Department of Defense later confirmed it had secured deals with seven major AI firms, including Microsoft, SpaceX, OpenAI, and Google, to deploy their models on classified networks. Google has defended its government partnerships, with spokesperson Jenn Crider stating in April that the company is proud to support national security infrastructure. She emphasized that Google remains committed to the consensus that AI should not be used for domestic mass surveillance or autonomous weapons without proper human oversight.
A previous attempt to organize occurred in 2021, when US Google employees formed the Alphabet Workers Union. While that body is not formally recognized by Alphabet for collective bargaining, it has successfully negotiated agreements for certain contractors. Chadfield, the CWU representative, warned that if the London negotiations do not make tangible progress, employees will request an arbitration committee to compel Google to provide formal recognition. He expressed hope that Google would eventually come to the table and reach an amicable agreement, but noted that both sides must be willing to make concessions, whereas Google currently appears unwilling to offer any.
