On October 25, 2021, Amazon workers arrive at the NLRB office in Brooklyn, NY with paperwork to join the union.
Brendan McDiarmid | Reuters
The Federal Labor Office on Wednesday recognized a landmark victory for independent unions. Amazonhas filed a series of objections filed by the e-retailer at its Staten Island warehouse.
In April, a majority of about 8,300 workers at Amazon’s Staten Island warehouse, known as JFK8, voted to join the Amazon union, making the company the first union organization in the United States. The Labor Relations Commission’s office, which oversees the election, interfered in the union movement. Amazon also claimed that the ALU intimidated its employees into voting yes.
In Wednesday’s filing, Cornele Overstreet, director of the NLRB’s Phoenix-based office, said he agreed with the federal labor authority’s previous decision that all of Amazon’s objections should be dismissed.
Under U.S. labor law, employers are obligated to enter into negotiations in good faith with the union after the union wins the election and the results are proven. However, the process can be plagued with delays as employers try to avoid signing the first contract and both parties may be hustling for contract details. Bloomberg Law analysis shows that it takes an average of 465 days to reach a collective bargaining agreement between an employer and newly unionized workers.
Amazon may also appeal this ruling to the NLRB Board of Directors in Washington. Amazon spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said in a statement that the company intends to dispute the results.
“As I’ve said from the beginning, I don’t believe this election process is fair, lawful, or representative of most of what our team wants.
At the New York Times Dealbook Summit late last year, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said there was “a lot of injustice” in the union movement and that legal proceedings were “not over yet.” Told.
“I think it will pass through the NLRB,” Jassy said.
ALU Interim President Chris Smalls wrote in a tweet The union “beat the Amazon fair and square” and asked Jassy to “come to the table” and sign the contract.
After workers voted to join the union at JFK8, the ALU is struggling to replicate its success. Workers at a facility near Staten Island he refused to unionize in May, and the ALU he lost the election at a warehouse in Albany in October.
look: How Two Friends Formed Amazon’s First US Union And What’s Next
