Topline
A federal labor agency official on Wednesday rejected Amazon’s bid to overturn a historic vote by workers at its Staten Island warehouse in favor of unionization, in a ruling that comes as unionization efforts by Amazon workers across the country have stagnated after a surge in early 2022.
Amazon workers at the LDJ5 Amazon Sort Center join a rally in support of the union in Staten Island, … [+]
Key Facts
Cornele Overstreet, an official from the National Labor Relations Board in Phoenix, agreed with a September ruling by the agency who said that the union vote of March 2022 should be upheld.
Amazon had called for the results of the vote at its JFK8 warehouse to be invalidated as it accused the NLRB office overseeing the election of interfering during the unionization drive, while also accused the Amazon Labor Union of intimidating workers to vote in their favor.
In Wednesday’s ruling, Overstreet said he found no evidence to support Amazon’s allegations.
Amazon reserves the right to challenge this ruling and the company indicated it plans to do just that and file an appeal with the NLRB’s Washington office according to a statement shared with media outlets.
Forbes has reached out to the company for a comment.
Crucial Quote
Christian Smalls, the president of the Amazon Labor Union tweeted: “We officially have been certified by Region 28 NLRB. Congratulations Amazon Labor Union. We beat Amazon fair and square [and] now is time to sign a CONTRACT! Come to the table Andy Jassy.”
News Peg
After the historic victory at JFK8 last year, efforts to unionize Amazon warehouse workers across the country have struggled. According to the Wall Street Journal, these attempts have been hindered by high turnover at Amazon’s warehouses and the company’s efforts to bring in outside consultants to discourage workers from unionizing. Some workers have also accused Amazon of terminating their employment for engaging in unionization efforts, an allegation the tech giant has denied. In another move that likely dented unionizing efforts, Amazon raised the average starting wage for new employees to $19 per hour. The company has seen a surge in unionization efforts across several of its warehouses since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Workplace safety at the company’s warehouses came under scrutiny during the early part of the pandemic as workers alleged that the company disregarded health and safety requirements like contact tracing and proper ventilation.
Key Background
In a historic vote in March last year, a majority of the nearly 8,300 workers at Amazon’s JFK8 warehouse voted in favor of unionization, becoming the first unionized warehouse in the company’s history. The union, however, lost two subsequent votes later in the year—one at a second Staten Island warehouse called LDJ5 in May and a second at a warehouse in Albany, New York in October. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy previously told the New York Times he believes the unionization vote JFK8 had been beset by “irregularities” and suggested that his company is willing to take the fight against its results to “federal courts.”
Further Reading
Amazon Loses Bid to Overturn Union Victory at Staten Island Warehouse (New York Times)
Amazon union victory at Staten Island warehouse upheld by federal labor board (CNBC)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/01/12/amazon-warehouse-union-victory-upheld-heres-what-it-means-organizing-efforts-across-the-company/