Unions across the globe will tomorrow (Thursday) be setting up the first ever cyber picket line in Second Life – the virtual reality world.
IBM workers in Italy are protesting against the company’s decision to slash bonuses worth up to 1,000 Euros each.
The action will feature sign-carrying avatars – Second Life characters – created by IBM workers.
Choosing to echo the ongoing real-world campaign in virtual reality has brought IBM’s union committee RSU significant international publicity, and allowed link-ups with IBM employees from many other countries, including the UK and India.
Other unionists and supporters from around the world are expected to attend, and the TUC will also be sending delegates to the demonstration in solidarity with the IBM workers.
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Owen Tudor, TUC head of international relations, said: “Unions reinvent themselves every time bad bosses change the way they do business. IBM’s virtual customers will be meeting cyber unionists for the first time this week, and firms who do the dirty on their staff can expect more and more innovative protests.”
More information can be found on the protest website.
