Union comes up short in second Amazon union election in NY
Union comes up short in second Amazon union election in NY
Amazon workers with the independent Amazon Labor Union came up short in the vote count for the union election at the LDJ5 sorting center in Staten Island, New York, the second Amazon site in New York to hold a union election after the JFK8 warehouse victory on 1 April.
1,633 workers at LDJ5 were eligible to vote in the union election, compared to over 8,000 workers who were eligible to vote in the JFK8 warehouse election. 618 workers voted against unionization, with 380 workers voting in favor. Two ballots were void due to no markings, with no challenged ballots.
The union has expressed intent to challenge the election, citing unfair labor practices filed by the union with the NLRB over Amazon’s conduct through the election.
Amazon aggressively opposed unionization efforts at both warehouses and have continued to try to appeal the first union election victory with the National Labor Relations Board. A hearing on Amazon’s objections to the JFK8 election is scheduled at a different NLRB regional office, as Amazon has accused the NLRB Brooklyn office of supporting the union.
Mat Cusick, an organizer with the Amazon Labor Union and a current employee at Amazon DYY6, a delivery station near JFK8, explained the atmosphere outside of the LDJ5 sorting center ahead of the election was like a picnic party with Amazon workers and organizers, including free food, drinks, free COVID tests, a rolling library, and music, that Amazon’s security sought to repeatedly shut down.
“Amazon is afraid of the truth. They're afraid of people having those conversations, they've been trying to shut down our operations and trying to keep it from turning into an atmosphere of conviviality, of social connection, the sorts of things that we represent, and they want to shut that down,” said Cusick. “Luckily, we're resilient. So we always find a way to build that back up. And they always try to stomp it down again. But it's an act of desperation to me, the way that they are getting more aggressive, it just looks desperate. It’s not an effective strategy. It's backfiring.”
The independent Amazon Labor Union, led by former Amazon worker Chris Smalls, has received dozens of inquiries from other Amazon workers around the US and Internationally who are interested in forming a union at their warehouses. Amazon workers in North Carolina are currently collecting union authorization signatures, inspired by the New York win. On 30 April, Amazon workers at a warehouse in Shakopee, Minnesota walked off the job to protest for wage increases and time off for Eid.
The Amazon Labor Union has filed several unfair labor practice charges against Amazon leading up to the union election at LDJ5 and is currently pushing the New York State Attorney General Leticia James to repay tax credits the company received through the Excelsior Jobs program over the company’s union avoidance tactics in New York.
New York State Senator Jessica Ramos has also introduced a bill that would limit and regulate productivity quotas in warehouses, targeting Amazon’s high injury rates after a similar bill was passed in California in 2021. President Biden is also reportedly considering meeting with unionized Amazon and Starbucks workers at the White House.