My point it has nothing to do with traditional motivations for unionizing that everyone is discussing. Also, workers definitely have nothing to do with deciding whether whether some content is appropriate. It has nothing to do with workplace conditions or collective bargaining. They aren't the ones who lose money when Republicans drop Kickstarter.
I ask again, and? Unionization is collective action by a group of workers. It will provide them the ability to negotiate future issues (i.e. not wanting to host Nazi kickstarters). Of course they have everything to lose if kickstarter loses money, the first people laid off aren't CEOs.
No they don't lose anything. Kickstarter can't claw back their wages. Unlike, a factory worker, they can easily find another job.
They get paid a salary to do a job, not to protest business decisions. If they want to protest something, they can, but they shouldn't expect any protection from being fired because they're literally refusing to do the job they were paid to do. Do you think a book store employees should receive protection for moving all the books on evolution to the fiction section?
What's wrong with workers protesting business decisions? Ignore the culture war angle for a second; what if they were protesting apolitical business decisions from management that they believe would be calamitous to the financial fortunes of the firm? What if there is mismanagement at play? Then what's the recourse besides organizing for collective action- Speaking up at all hands, just to get rebuffed? Leaking bad news to the press? Breaking the chain of command and reporting to the board directly?
Long have engineers and other workers complained of clueless MBAs. Why go to bat for the pointy-haired bosses? Haven't you ever worked at an org where product leadership screwed up, leading to layoffs anyway? Or management overruled the technical concerns of the engineers? Or pushed them towards something that was simply unsound for the product and the business as a whole? Pursued strategy by fiat, where the only check against their power is the board?
People imagine tech unions will just be a rehash of Industrial Era blue collar unions, but they have the potential to be something more- a way for the rank and file to finally have the clout to push back against bad engineering decisions from poor leadership.
There is at least one example that comes to mind where a union forces corporate leadership to make business decisions that could potentially help the company stay competitive- and thus protect all of their jobs:
Finally, as shareholders themselves, why shouldn't employees protest against questionable business decisions? What stake do they have in a company if they are expected to unthinkingly carry out orders?
