Amazon workers in NYC reject union in a reversal of fortune

NEW YORK –

Amazon warehouse workers rejected a union proposal on Monday. This is a major blow to organizers, who had just completed the first successful U.S. organizing effort in Amazon’s history.

Warehouse workers voted against the union by casting 618 votes, or 62%, this time. Amazon was able to win a second labor victory and raise questions about whether it was a fluke.

According to the National Labor Relations Board which oversees this process, 380 workers (or 38%) voted in support of the grassroots union. According to an Amazon voter list, 61% of eligible workers voted, while approximately 1,600 others were eligible.

The few ballots that were contested by Amazon Labor Union or the company, neither were enough to change the outcome. Both parties have until next Monday for objections to the election. The ALU already plans to object. saidSeth Goldstein is a union lawyer who offers pro-bono legal help to groups.

Kelly Nantel, Amazon spokesperson said in a statement that the company was glad workers at the warehouse “were able to have their voices heard.”

“We look forward to continuing to work directly together as we strive to make every day better for our employees,” Nantel said.

A surprise victory for the ALU came in an additional election last month when workers from another Staten Island facility voted for unionization. This was the first time Amazon had done so in the U.S.

Monday’s defeat is certain to hurt. A second labor win was expected in order to increase organizing at the nation’s second-largest employer and strengthen the influence and power of the ALU.

However, despite the momentum gained from the first win it was uncertain if the ALU would be in a position to repeat its success. Organizers saidThey had lost some support at their warehouse following filing for an election in Feb. This was because they devoted more energy to the nearby facility, which voted last month to unionize. The facility also had fewer organizers than the 30 at the other warehouse.

Chris Smalls, the Amazon worker who was fired for leading the ALU, posted on Twitter Monday that he was proud to have participated in the event, saying they faced a greater challenge than the previous win.

“Nothing changes we organize!” Smalls tweeted. “do not be discouraged or sad be upset and talk to your coworkers”

Amazon’s aggressive antiunion tactics were just some of the obstacles that again obstructed the effort. In the lead-up to the election, Amazon continued to hold mandatory meetings to persuade its workers to reject the union effort, posted anti-union flyers and launched a website urging workers to “vote NO.”

Goldstein, the attorney working with the ALU, argues Amazon stepped up its “union-busting” campaign after the last election, disciplined organizers for engaging in union activities and barred them from displaying a pro-union sign in the breakroom. The union is also scathing about Amazon’s mandatory anti-union meetings for workers. While the NLRB allows companies to order such meetings, the top labor board prosecutor is trying to make them illegal.

Amazon’s pockets are also in the sights of the union. The union is currently pushing for Letitia James, the New York Attorney General to investigate Amazon’s eligibility in New York for tax credits. On the national scene, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders is asking President Joe Biden to cut off Amazon’s contracts with the government for what the senator calls its “illegal anti-union activity.” Smalls is expected to attend a Senate hearing on the issue, which is slated to be held on Thursday.

John Logan, Director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University saidHe wasn’t surprised at the union’s failure. He believed the ALU was stretched too thin. He believed that a second victory for the union would have strengthened its position. saidAmazon was more interested in the results than the fledgling labor team.

“A second defeat could have proved fatal to the company’s efforts to stop the organizing from spreading like wildfire, just as it has done at Starbucks,” Logan said. But he noted there’s no question that “the ALU’s organizing campaign will continue and that labor activism at Amazon will continue to spread across the country.”

It was going to be a difficult road ahead for ALU, regardless of how Monday went. Amazon has disputed the results of the first election. It filed a file with the NLRB arguing that the vote was tainted both by organizers as well as the board’s regional bureau in Brooklyn, which oversaw it. Pro-union experts believe that the company wants a redo of the election. However, it is a bid to delay contract negotiations and reduce some of the organizing momentum. A separate NLRB Southwest regional office will hold a hearing to hear the company’s objections later in the month.

The final outcome of the separate union election in Bessemer (Alabama) is still uncertain. There are 416 unresolved challenged ballots. The next week will see hearings to hear the ballots.