A group of unionized workers on the YouTube Music Content Operations Team were recently laid off by Google and Cognizant. The workers, who were testifying to the Austin City Council about their union dispute, received the news of their termination while speaking to the council. The sudden layoffs have sparked outrage and caused a viral response.

The terminated workers claim that their jobs have been outsourced to workers in India. They were told that the overseas team would cover American holidays and union strikes, but it appears that they were actually being trained to replace the Austin-based workers. This move has caused frustration and raised concerns about the companies' priorities.

Both Google and Cognizant have denied any wrongdoing and have challenged certain parts of the workers' accounts. Google claims that the YouTube Music team is not their employees and that Cognizant is responsible for their employment terms. Cognizant, on the other hand, denies firing workers in retaliation and states that the terminated workers will become part of their talent pool.

The laid-off workers, supported by the Alphabet Workers Union-Communications Workers of America (AWU-CWA), are filing an Unfair Labor Practice charge against Google and Cognizant. They allege that the workers were unlawfully terminated in retaliation for their union organizing. The workers are determined to continue fighting for justice and better working conditions.