The absence of strikes in the tech industry is an intriguing phenomenon, given the ongoing discontent within the sector. Throughout history, strikes have been a powerful tool used by workers to demand better working conditions, fair wages, and fundamental rights. However, there is one sector that seems notably absent from such mobilizations: IT professionals. Despite growing pressures and challenges within the tech industry, strikes among software developers, systems engineers, and other IT professionals are extremely rare. This article explores the reasons behind this rarity, highlighting the unique work culture of tech companies, the high demand and mobility of professionals in the sector, and the fragmentation that hinders collective organization. Additionally, it examines potential hidden interests that aim to prevent unionization in a sector that is strategic for the global economy.
The work culture in the tech industry
One of the primary factors explaining the absence of strikes among IT professionals is the particular work culture of the tech industry. From its inception, the sector has promoted an image of flexibility, innovation, and meritocracy. This environment has been carefully cultivated by tech companies, which value autonomy, creativity, and the ability to solve problems independently. This leads many professionals to identify more with the role of entrepreneurs than with that of traditional employees, making it difficult to adopt collective tactics like strikes.
Moreover, human resources policies in the tech sector have been designed to keep employees satisfied and to discourage labor organization. Perks like free meals, on-site gyms, and company stock options have created an environment where organized protests are perceived as unnecessary. However, this culture of perks may be strategically designed to defuse any form of collective resistance, keeping workers individually satisfied but collectively inactive.
This “corporate perks” strategy is not new. In fact, it dates back several decades. During the 1990s and 2000s, many tech companies adopted the idea that work should be more than just a job—it should be a comprehensive experience. Thus, large leisure offices began to emerge, with recreational spaces that included everything from video game rooms to relaxation areas with bean bag chairs, ping-pong tables, and in-house baristas. Iconic companies like Google and Microsoft took this idea to the extreme, turning their offices into true campuses of fun and comfort. This image of tech offices, with slides instead of stairs and gourmet coffee stations on every corner, became a symbol of the sector’s success and innovation.
However, this approach had a deeper objective than merely attracting and retaining talent. Fostering a culture of individual satisfaction based on tangible but superficial perks allowed companies to divert attention from deeper labor issues, such as the lack of union protections or clear channels for expressing workplace dissatisfaction. Employees, feeling pampered by all these comforts, were less likely to organize collectively to demand labor rights, as it was perceived that they were already being offered a lot.
Nevertheless, in the past decade, there has been a noticeable shift in this trend. Over time, many companies have begun to reduce or eliminate these extravagant perks, replacing them with more traditional work environments. Offices that once stood out for their unique features, such as game rooms or indoor gardens, are being replaced by more functional and minimalist spaces, focused on productivity rather than recreation. This change reflects, in part, a maturation of the industry, where the priority is no longer seducing talent with luxuries but optimizing resources and adapting to new economic realities.
However, this transformation also reveals a paradox. As perks diminish and offices become more conventional, workers in the tech industry might begin to reconsider their position within these companies. The elimination of these perks could lead to greater awareness of the actual working conditions, which, in turn, could encourage IT professionals to seek new forms of collective organization. In this sense, the decline of the perks culture could be the catalyst that leads to greater labor mobilization in the tech sector.
High demand and labor mobility
Another key reason why strikes among IT professionals are practically nonexistent is the high demand for their skills in the labor market. IT professionals, especially those with expertise in software development, cybersecurity, or artificial intelligence, are highly sought after. This gives them significant individual bargaining power, allowing them to change jobs easily if they are dissatisfied with their working conditions.
This phenomenon, known as “voting with their feet,” reduces the perceived need for strikes, as workers can simply seek new opportunities instead of organizing to demand changes. However, this approach also fragments the collective power of IT professionals, as their ability to organize is diluted by constant labor mobility. Companies, aware of this dynamic, may prefer this constant flow of talent over the possibility of facing unified labor demands.
Fragmentation of the sector and lack of unionization
The tech industry is highly fragmented, with professionals spread across numerous companies of different sizes and geographical locations. This dispersion makes it challenging to organize large-scale labor movements. Unlike sectors such as automotive or construction, where workers are often concentrated in large factories or construction sites, IT professionals work in a much more atomized environment.
Moreover, unionization in the tech industry is minimal compared to other industries. Tech companies have historically adopted an anti-union stance, arguing that unions do not align with the fast-paced and innovative culture of the sector. Although there have been recent attempts to form unions in some large tech companies, these movements are still in their early stages and have not reached the critical mass necessary to mobilize effective strikes.
The tech solutions mindset
Many IT professionals share a mindset oriented toward solving problems through technology, which influences their approach to labor issues. Instead of resorting to strikes, they are more likely to seek technological solutions to their challenges, such as automating tedious tasks or creating tools to improve work efficiency. This mindset aligns with the predominant ideology in Silicon Valley, which promotes the idea that any problem, including labor issues, can be solved through technological innovation. However, this belief in the power of technology to solve labor problems can be exploited by companies to avoid facing collective demands.
Hidden motives: Control and stability in a strategic sector
Beyond these factors, there are deeper reasons that could explain why strikes among IT professionals are so rare and why unionization is so difficult in this sector. The tech industry is crucial to the global economy and the functioning of virtually all productive sectors. This gives it a strategic role that both companies and governments wish to control strictly.
The possibility that a strike in the tech sector could paralyze critical systems, from communication infrastructures to financial services, creates a strong incentive to prevent any kind of labor organization that could lead to strikes. Tech companies, in collaboration with governments, may be implementing policies and strategies aimed at preventing unionization or any form of organization that could jeopardize the stability of this vital sector.
Moreover, the influence of tech giants in global politics and economics allows them to exert considerable control over the narratives surrounding labor rights in technology. The promotion of an anti-union culture and the offering of individual perks can be seen as mechanisms designed to prevent the consolidation of labor movements that could challenge their power.
A complex and evolving phenomenon
The absence of strikes among IT professionals is not the result of a single cause but a combination of cultural, economic, and structural factors, along with darker interests that seek to maintain control over a strategic sector. The work culture of flexibility and perks, the high demand for tech skills, the fragmentation of the sector, and the problem-solving mentality through technology have created an environment where strikes are not seen as a viable tool. However, the influence of companies and governments seeking to prevent labor organization to maintain stability in this crucial sector cannot be ignored.
As the tech industry continues to evolve and face new challenges, is it possible that we will see a shift in how IT workers organize and advocate for their rights? Or is it merely a fantasy to think that IT professionals will unite? Will the big companies allow it, or will they exert pressure to prevent it? Moreover, do IT workers have enough motivation and cohesion to challenge the structures that currently keep them fragmented? While working conditions could improve with greater organization, the control exercised by both companies and governments over this strategic sector could remain a significant obstacle. The unresolved question is whether IT professionals will be able to overcome these interests to achieve real change in their working conditions.
