Google will require that the outside companies employing its temporary and contract workers give them comprehensive health care, a minimum wage of $15 per hour, 12 weeks of parental leave, and a minimum of eight days of sick leave, according to an internal memo obtained by The Hill.
These suppliers have until January of 2020 to comply with the minimum wage and until 2022 to offer health benefits. Google is also stipulating that all suppliers kick in $5,000 per year toward tuition reimbursement for learning “new skills or taking courses.”
This doesn’t apply to independent contractors who are working on their own for Google. However, the number of temp and contract workers is apparently sizeable. The initiative came on the heels of a letter from 915 Google workers that demanded these contract and temp workers receive equal treatment. Although The Hill says Google declined to give specific numbers, the employees’ letter claimed that temps and contractors make up over half (54%) of Google’s workforce, or 122,000 positions.
A Google spokesperson tells Fast Company, “We only report on the number of Google’s employees” and declined to verify how many temp and contract workers this would impact.
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