Q3 Earnings Alert! Plan early for this week’s stock reports with all key data in 1 placeSee list

Union says Amazon continues to interfere with election at Alabama warehouse

Published 02/22/2022, 11:14 AM
Updated 02/22/2022, 03:57 PM
© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A banner reading "VOTE" is seen hanging at an Amazon facility on the first day of the unionization vote in Bessemer,  Alabama, U.S., February 4, 2022. REUTERS/Dustin Chambers/File Photo
AMZN
-

By Daniel Wiessner

(Reuters) -A U.S. retail workers' union on Tuesday accused Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) of unlawfully interfering with a union election at an Alabama warehouse where the company had already been found to have engaged in unlawful conduct to deter labor organizing.

The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) claiming Amazon removed union literature from employee break rooms, limited workers' access to the warehouse before and after shifts and forced workers to attend anti-union meetings.

Amazon in a statement provided by spokesperson Kelly Nantel said it was confident it had fully complied with the law.

"Our focus remains on working directly with our team to make Amazon a great place to work," the company said.

Scrutiny of working conditions at Amazon has intensified in recent months, with some employees seeking to organize at facilities in New York and Canada. A victory at even one warehouse would be a milestone that labor experts say could invigorate the U.S. labor movement.

The NLRB sent unionization ballots to workers at the Bessemer, Alabama, plant earlier this month and will tally the votes at the end of March.

The RWDSU was handily defeated in an election held last year, but the NLRB threw out those results after finding that Amazon unlawfully influenced the vote by encouraging workers to place ballots in a mailbox on company property.

Amazon and a group of New York workers last week agreed tentatively on terms for a union election at a different warehouse, and an organizer said that vote would take place late next month.

The charges filed on Tuesday could lay the groundwork for the RWDSU to challenge the results of the pending election in Alabama if it loses.

The union said in the charges that meetings featuring anti-union messaging that Amazon workers are required to attend are coercive, and that workers should have the right to opt out of them.

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A banner reading

So-called "captive audience meetings" are currently legal under U.S. labor law and are a common feature of employer campaigns to discourage unionizing.

But the general counsel of the NLRB, an appointee of Democratic President Joe Biden, recently said she wanted the board to reconsider that precedent.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.