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Nearly 900 Google employees signed an open letter urging the company to be more transparent about how its technology is used by U.S. immigration enforcement agencies. Workers expressed alarm that Google continues providing cloud services and other support to agencies like ICE and CBP, especially as recent federal operations have become more aggressive and resulted in civilian deaths. Several employees said they felt misled about Google’s involvement in government surveillance and enforcement work, arguing that the company is drifting away from its stated values. They also criticized leadership, including CEO Sundar Pichai, for not addressing the extent of Google’s government partnerships. The letter calls for Google to withdraw from all DHS‑related work, protect employees from immigration enforcement, and hold an all‑hands meeting to address concerns.

Roughly 3,000 additional pharmacy and laboratory technicians at Kaiser Permanente facilities in Southern California plan to strike, joining more than 30,000 nurses and other medical staff already on the picket lines. The walkout is part of a broader dispute over what unions describe as unfair labor practices and deteriorating working conditions. This expansion marks another escalation in a wave of labor unrest across the U.S. health‑care sector. Workers say staffing shortages and rising workloads have pushed them to a breaking point. The strike is set to begin Monday, adding further pressure on Kaiser during an already tense standoff.

Colorado lawmakers have revived a union-related bill nearly identical to one the governor vetoed last year. The proposed Worker Protection Act would overhaul the state’s long‑standing Labor Peace Act by eliminating the requirement for two separate union votes. Supporters argue the change would make it easier for workers to organize and secure better wages and benefits, especially given Colorado’s high cost of living. Business groups oppose the bill, saying it removes an important safeguard that ensures all employees have a say in whether dues are collected. Despite the controversy, the bill passed its first committee vote along party lines.

Employees at a North Carolina mining facility asked the National Labor Relations Board to overturn a regional decision blocking a vote to remove their union, arguing current NLRB policy allows unions to delay elections by filing unresolved labor charges. The case could prompt the board to reconsider its “blocking charge” policy, which critics say undermines workers’ ability to freely choose whether they want union representation.

Unionized Starbucks baristas extended a months-long strike by calling on customers to delete the company’s mobile app as a show of solidarity while negotiations for a first contract remain stalled. Starbucks Workers United says workers are demanding livable wages, stable schedules, and an end to union-busting, while the company downplayed the strike’s impact and said it remains open to bargaining.

Workers at two suburban Chicago high schools successfully removed SEIU Local 73 as their bargaining representative after a majority petitioned for a decertification vote. Before the National Labor Relations Board could hold the election, union officials withdrew their claim to represent the workers, effectively ending the union’s role and freeing employees from mandatory union fees under Illinois law.

Multiple unions representing federal workers sued the Trump administration seeking to block planned cuts of more than 10,000 jobs at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, arguing the layoffs are unlawful and were not approved by Congress. The unions say FEMA plans to stop renewing temporary and on-call disaster response contracts, which could undermine emergency preparedness, and that the cuts violate a recent law barring federal layoffs through late January. The lawsuit is part of broader legal efforts to challenge mass layoffs across the federal government.

The United Steelworkers union agreed to a rolling 24-hour contract extension with Marathon Petroleum, temporarily averting a strike by roughly 30,000 refinery and chemical plant workers across the U.S. The union has rejected at least five company proposals so far, including a latest offer featuring a 14% wage increase over four years, with key sticking points remaining over cost-of-living adjustments, healthcare costs, safety standards, and limits on the use of artificial intelligence in plants. Marathon is the lead negotiator for a national pattern agreement covering two-thirds of U.S. refining capacity.

A group of short-term call centre staff at Australia’s Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) are being replaced by a third-party contractor after hitting the maximum allowable tenure for temporary contracts, a move that has drawn sharp criticism from unions. The Community and Public Sector Union warns outsourcing experienced staff undermines service quality for vulnerable people seeking government assistance and contradicts government pledges to bring core work back in-house. DEWR says limited use of labour hire is permitted legally and that contracted staff receive comparable pay and training, but workers and union representatives argue the change risks longer wait times and loss of expertise.

In the United States, multiple unions have filed a lawsuit to block planned staffing cuts at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), arguing the layoffs violate a law passed to prohibit federal job losses tied to the recent government shutdown. Unions say the cuts were not approved by Congress and challenge the administration’s broader approach to reshaping federal workforce policy. The legal action highlights increasing labor–management conflicts over federal employment security amid budget battles.