Over a thousand Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) (GOOG) employees have had enough. In an open letter published Friday, Google workers are calling on CEO Sundar Pichai to pull the plug on contracts with federal immigration enforcement agencies and come clean about exactly how the company's technology is being deployed by the government.

A Growing Chorus of Concern

The letter, which had garnered 1,002 signatures when last checked, doesn't mince words. "Google is powering this campaign of surveillance, violence, and repression," the employees wrote. Their primary target? Contracts that provide cloud services to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

The workers say Google's leadership has failed to be transparent internally about the scope and nature of the company's work with federal agencies. That opacity, they argue, forced them to go public with their demands. Beyond ending the partnerships with immigration enforcement, employees are also pushing for workplace safeguards against immigration enforcement actions, enhanced worker safety measures, and an all-hands meeting to address their concerns directly with leadership.

Tech Workers Push Back on Government Contracts

This isn't happening in a vacuum. Google employees are joining a broader movement among tech workers uncomfortable with their employers' government ties. At the end of January, workers from Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN), Spotify Technology (SPOT), Meta Platforms Inc. (META), and other companies sent a similar letter calling for ICE to be kept "out of our cities." The Google letter reflects growing dissatisfaction with business relationships that employees believe contribute to immigration enforcement activities they view as problematic, particularly following recent fatal incidents.

The timing is notable. In April 2025, Google secured a major government deal that directly challenges Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and its long-standing position as the go-to software provider for federal agencies. So while employees are demanding Google step back from federal immigration work, the company is actually deepening its footprint in government contracting more broadly.

The Web of Defense and Security Partnerships

Google's federal entanglements extend well beyond cloud services. The company has teamed up with Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT) to embed its Gemini AI into undisclosed offerings. It also works with Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR), whose platforms directly support DHS, ICE, CBP, and all six branches of the U.S. military. These partnerships put Google's technology at the heart of federal security and enforcement operations, which is precisely what has employees concerned.

The employee letter lands amid escalating battles over immigration enforcement at the state level. In California, Governor Gavin Newsom and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem have been locked in a heated dispute over the state's cooperation with ICE regarding criminal deportations and detainer compliance. The clash between federal enforcement priorities and state-level resistance adds another layer of complexity to the debate Google employees are trying to force.

Whether Google will respond to employee demands remains to be seen. The company faces a delicate balancing act: maintaining lucrative government contracts while addressing internal dissent from workers who believe those same contracts conflict with the company's stated values. With over a thousand signatures and counting, this isn't a concern that's going away quietly.