Google Is Offering a 'Voluntary Exit' For Some Employees After a Petition Signed by 1,400 Googlers Calls For Job Security

Feb 01, 2025 03:19 AM - 1 week ago 10344

Over 1,400 Google labor signed a petition this week calling for much occupation information and asked the company to instrumentality buyouts, aliases financial inducement packages to time off the institution voluntarily, alternatively of resorting to wide layoffs.

Now, Google appears to beryllium taking them up connected their advice, opening pinch a buyout.

Google elder vice president Rick Osterloh sent a memo to each staff connected the platforms and devices (P&D) squad connected Thursday greeting informing them astir a "voluntary exit program." All labor successful that section were fixed the action to time off Google connected their ain successful speech for a severance package of undisclosed value.

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"The Platforms & Devices squad is offering a voluntary exit programme that provides US-based Googlers moving connected this squad the expertise to voluntarily time off the institution pinch a severance package," Osterloh wrote successful the memo. He said that the exit programme could use those who mightiness not beryllium passionate astir the team's ngo of "building awesome products, pinch velocity and efficiency" aliases those facing trouble pinch their roles.

Google confirmed that the voluntary exit programme was happening to 9to5Google. The buyout only applies to U.S. labor successful the P&D division, not to different groups for illustration Search aliases AI.

Google created the P&D portion successful April 2024 by merging the squad responsible for devices and services, including Pixel smartphones and Chromebooks, pinch the platforms and ecosystems team, which handled Android and Chrome software.

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Google CEO Sundar Pichai stated astatine the time that the move was meant to "speed up decision-making," "bring the champion innovations to partners faster," and "help america present higher value products and experiences."

Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

In a petition created earlier this week addressed to Pichai by his first name, the Union voices interest astir instability astatine Google owed to layoffs.

"Ongoing rounds of layoffs make america consciousness insecure astir our jobs," the petition reads. "The institution is intelligibly successful a beardown financial position, making the nonaccomplishment of truthful galore valuable colleagues without mentation wounded moreover more."

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The petition, which has been signed by 1,430 Google labor astatine the clip of writing, asks for guaranteed severance that is astatine slightest adjacent to the severance package Google offered successful January 2023 of 16 weeks of salary, positive 2 weeks for each further twelvemonth astatine the company.

Google package technologist and Alphabet Workers Union organizing chair Alan McAvinney told The Register on Thursday in an email that the buyout connection is "proof of what we tin execute erstwhile we guidelines together arsenic Google's workers and sound our concerns."

Google fto spell of 12,000 employees successful January 2023 and at slightest 1,000 more a twelvemonth later. According to its latest net report, it had a headcount of 181,269 employees.

Google posted better-than-expected third-quarter earnings successful precocious October, which saw Google Services bring successful $76.5 cardinal successful revenue.

Related: Google Says It Won't Follow Amazon's Lead With a Return-to-Office Mandate — Yet

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