Twelve months ago--a couple of eternities measured in Internet time--union activists would have had more luck herding cats than organising tech workers.
Twelve months later, it's a changed landscape. With the New Economy sullied by everyday reports of stumbles at dot-coms and established companies alike, unions finally have a chance to gain a foothold with this most union-resistant segment of the labour force.
Or do they?
If history is any judge, I wouldn't expect much. In the burgeoning techno-meritocracy that has been ascendant throughout the land these past several years, Ayn Rand was elevated to Lord Mayor and Holy Mother, all rolled into one.
The challenge for organisers is that times have been really good for rank-and-file tech workers. It's going to take more than the usual pitch about workers' rights and fairness--how about another 2,000-point drop in the Nasdaq?--to convince them to think more favorably about unions.
Consider the frustration felt by somebody like Marcus Courtney, who has been at the forefront of an effort to unionise technology workers at companies such as Amazon.com and Microsoft. Courtney, a lead organiser for a division of the Communication Workers of America, has signed up only 250 dues-paying members, while another 2,000 subscribe to his free newsletter--and this nearly two-and-a-half years after he kicked off his organisation drive.
That doesn't exactly qualify as the second coming of Joe Hill. To be sure, software developers constitute a tough crowd to win over. And in the absence of a real economic catastrophe threatening their livelihood, I don't see this group ever embracing unionisation.
I think that explains why organizers have begun to place less emphasis on targeting self-satisfied programmers with six-figure salaries in favor of going after the thousands of technical writers and graphic artists and service reps who are just as important to the software industry's success as the codeheads.
Back in the days when the unions were organising workers in Detroit, activists could point to life-and-death issues. Metal presses were literally dropping on people's heads.
These days, "life-and-death" means a layoff notice without the protection of a safety net. That's happening a lot. Ask the 250 people who got pink slips on Tuesday from Excite@Home how they feel right about now. Think they might have second thoughts about unionisation? How about the 2,000-plus folks who found out on Wednesday they were getting the heave-ho from AOL Time-Warner?
Fat City was nice while it lasted. Because of whatever it is that we're now in--slump, recession, Greenspan burp--union organizers believe they can create at least the foundation of a labor movement that will have the sort of impact on the tech industry that the United Auto Workers had on the US automobile industry.
That's an ambitious goal. Will unionisers be able to pull it off? Given the logistical challenges and the political climate, I wouldn't bet on it, not unless the economy gets worse--a lot worse.
