Labor Board Calls for New Amazon Union Election After Finding Company Misconduct

After finding that Amazon interfered with the union election, The National Labor Relations Board has ordered that Amazon workers in Alabama have a second chance at forming a Union This was earlier in the year.

The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU), pointed out that Amazon used a variety of tactics to stop the union effort after the April first union election was unsuccessful. This gained national attention. If the employees succeed, they will become the first Amazon workers to successfully unite, which would send shockwaves throughout the country. time of major labor unrest.

Union election reruns These are often unsuccessful, since the company’s efforts to poison the well are likely to stick around even after the first election. In fact, illegal tactics and the risk of a second election are common union-busting strategies.

The date of the rerun has still yet to be determined — but because Amazon won the first election by a decisive 2 to 1 margin, the company is likely betting that it will be unsuccessful. There’s also nothing stopping Amazon from employing Shady union-busting techniquesThis time, it is not the first time that illegal anti-union tactics are punished.

Labor advocates and the union hope that this rerun will be successful, despite the fact that the Bessemer, Alabama union drive received a lot of attention last spring. The company has changed dramatically since the union drive. The target ofLabor advocates garnered scrutinyIts efforts to suppress pro-union sentiment among its employees. The union drive continues to thrive. inspired over 1,000 Amazon workers across the countryTo inquire about combining their locations, according the RWDSU.

“Today’s decision confirms what we were saying all along – that Amazon’s intimidation and interference prevented workers from having a fair say in whether they wanted a union in their workplace – and as the [NLRB] Regional Director has indicated, that is both unacceptable and illegal,” said RWDSU president Stuart AppelbaumMonday. “Amazon workers deserve to have a voice at work, which can only come from a union.”

Amazon likely Spend millionsHiring Anti-union consultantsAnd Police to intimidateWorkers and those who supported the union drive. It includes a variety of other unethical tactics. InstalledA mailbox was located outside the warehouse. It was supposed to be for workers to mail their union votes, but it was actually a mailbox. likely surveilledThe NLRB was established by the company.

The NLRB sharply criticized the company for its misconduct, saying that Amazon displayed “flagrant disregard” for labor laws in its anti-union campaign. The company “essentially hijacked the process and gave a strong impression that it controlled the process,” especially with its installation of the mailbox, the NLRB’s Atlanta regional director wrote.

In the meantime, the company has already started its messaging against the union election as a response to the announcement about the rerun.

“Our employees have always had the choice of whether or not to join a union,” an Amazon spokesperson said. “As a company, we don’t think unions are the best answer for our employees.” The statement went on to say that the NLRB decision invalidates the employees’ vote earlier this year. Of course, the company’s supposed concern for respecting employees’ decision-making is dubious considering they spent months pressuring and intimidating workers into voting no.

Amazon’s union drive has been used by labor advocates For example, of why Congress should pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, which would create harsher punishments for companies found participating in union-busting activities — ones that could actually incentivize trillion-dollar companies to comply with labor laws.