Content Moderators Unite: Challenging Big Tech’s Dominance

Content moderators, who sift through harmful content on online platforms, have established a global trade union alliance to advocate for better working conditions. The Global Trade Union Alliance of Content Moderators (GTUACM), announced today in Nairobi, Kenya, aims to “hold Big Tech accountable” for neglecting critical worker issues such as low wages, psychological trauma, and inadequate union representation throughout the industry.

Major companies like Meta, Bytedance, and Alphabet frequently outsource content moderation to contract workers. This work involves reviewing and flagging distressing content, such as violent videos, hate speech, and child abuse imagery. The GTUACM reports that many moderators suffer from serious mental health issues, including depression and PTSD, due to their exposure to such graphic material without sufficient support. Furthermore, these workers contend with unrealistic performance expectations, job insecurity, and apprehension about repercussions for voicing their concerns.

“The constant requirement to view thousands of distressing videos each day—beheadings, child exploitation, torture—takes an immense toll on our mental health,” said Michał Szmagaj, a former Meta content moderator now assisting in unionizing efforts in Poland. “We require job stability, fair treatment, and genuine access to mental health resources during work hours.”

GTUACM seeks to create a global initiative to negotiate with tech companies, coordinate collective advocacy efforts, and research occupational health issues. Moderators will gain entry to the alliance through their respective trade unions, with organizations from Ghana, Kenya, Turkey, Poland, Colombia, Portugal, Morocco, Tunisia, and the Philippines currently establishing their membership. Unions in other countries, like Ireland and Germany, are also anticipated to join soon.

While the US is not represented in the initial group, that doesn’t preclude involvement from American unions. Benjamin Parton, Head of UNI Global Union’s ICTS Sector, stated in an interview with The Verge, “Not all unions supporting the organization of content moderators could attend the event, but we are closely collaborating with our member unions in the U.S., such as the CWA, to advocate for justice within the Big Tech supply chain.”

“Kenya has emerged as a global center for content moderation, and while we welcome investment in this sector, it should not come at the expense of workers’ health,” emphasized Benson Okwaro, General Secretary of the Communication Workers Union of Kenya (COWU). “Thus, we are organizing locally while partnering with unions around the world to send a strong message to investors, including Meta, TikTok, Alphabet, and Amazon: moderators globally will not remain silent as platforms profit from their suffering.”