Post by @bvibber@wikis.world

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. is still stonewalling UK staff's unionization effort, dragging their feet on negotiations. The Foundation's attempt to reduce the size of the bargaining unit is now heading to arbitration:

https://wikiworkersunited.org/announcements/2026-10-19-uk-bargaining-unit-scope-negotiation-goes-to-arbitration/

Wiki Workers United

UK bargaining unit scope negotiation goes to arbitration

WWU-UK barganing unit scope determination moves to Central Arbitration Committee process following failure of parties to agree on management representation.

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Nicole Parsons

@Npars01@mstdn.social 15 hr. ago

@bvibber

Remember who controls Wikipedia now ...
https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/15/wikimedia-foundation-announces-new-ai-partnerships-with-amazon-meta-microsoft-perplexity-and-others/

https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/wikipedia-owner-signs-microsoft-meta-ai-content-training-deals-2026-01-15/

https://arstechnica.com/ai/2026/01/wikipedia-will-share-content-with-ai-firms-in-new-licensing-deals/

https://apnews.com/article/wikipedia-internet-jimmy-wales-50e796d70152d79a2e0708846f84f6d7

Oligarchs hate unions.
They've accustomed themselves to government subsidies, freedom from taxation, & unpaid content & labor, & no regulation

https://www.ft.com/content/8a261d23-da1e-4bc9-8b39-4dff8a488d16

https://www.businessinsider.com/tesla-ends-strike-sweden-worker-buyout-elon-musk-if-metall-2026-8

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/dec/20/elon-musk-unions-tesla

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/amp/politics/trump-and-musk-discussed-firing-striking-workers-the-uaw-is-now-seeking-an-nlrb-investigation

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/26/anti-union-lawsuit-conservative-courts-musk-starbucks-trader-joes

https://newrepublic.com/article/179165/musk-supreme-court-nlrb-labor

https://ballsandstrikes.org/law-politics/elon-musk-nlrb-rulings-fifth-circuit/

https://robertreich.substack.com/p/jeff-bezos-and-elon-musk-vs-american

Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk vs. American workers

The biggest robber barons of this Second Gilded Age are trying to end the freedom of workers to unionize

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Business Insider

Tesla ends 3-year strike in Sweden by throwing money at it

IF Metall said it's suspending its three-year-long industrial action against Tesla after the firm bought out the Swedish union's striking workers.

AP News

Wikipedia signs business deals with top AI companies like Amazon and Microsoft | AP News

Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia written by volunteers, is embracing artificial intelligence to mark its 25th anniversary. The site has signed up new AI partners, including Meta and Microsoft, alongside existing ones with companies like Google. These companies are paying to access Wikipedia content, supporting its nonprofit mission. Founder Jimmy Wales welcomes AI training on Wikipedia data, emphasizing its human-curated nature. The Wikimedia Foundation urges AI developers to pay for access, as bots heavily tax its servers. Wikipedia plans to use AI to assist editors and improve search experiences, while addressing criticism of bias and competition from rivals like Grokipedia.

Ars Technica

Wikipedia signs major AI firms to new priority data access deals

Wikimedia Enterprise signs Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, Perplexity, and Mistral to API access deals.

reuters.com

TechCrunch

Wikimedia Foundation announces new AI partnerships with Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Perplexity, and others | TechCrunch

The AI partnerships allow companies to access the org's content, like Wikipedia, at scale.

MaddieM4

@MaddieM4@raphus.social 18 hr. ago

@brooke In case anyone thought these people had given up being assholes after finally being forced to recognize the union at all...

Brooke Vibber :mediawiki:

@bvibber@wikis.world 17 hr. ago

@MaddieM4 Now I don't know this for sure, but it feels like Wikimedia Foundation is actively undermining the UK unionization effort because that effort undercuts management's ability to paint the union movement as US-focused and therefore dangerous to staff outside the US -- when in fact we have been proceeding on multiple national fronts this entire time with international solidarity as our central goal.