Employees at an Amazon warehouse in New York voted Friday to join a union, a victory for organized labor and a stinging defeat for the company, which has fought unionization efforts at the company.
While the official vote tally hasn't been announced, the union's lead is large enough that it's unlikely to change the outcome of the election. 2,350 are in favor of joining and 1,912 are against it.
Approximately 6,000 workers work at the JFK8 facility on Staten Island. It is the first time an Amazon facility in the US has voted to unionize. The National Labor Relations Board needs to certify the election result.
The projected outcome is a blow to Amazon, which has invested a lot in promoting its own benefits over those offered by unions. Amazon put up banners that said "Vote No" and held weekly mandatory meetings at JFK8. It hired a polling firm with ties to Democratic political groups.
Staten Island workers could challenge Amazon's current labor model by voting in the Amazon Labor Union. According to labor experts, unions will disrupt the level of control that Amazon exerts over its warehouse and delivery employees, like their ability to set the pace of work and hourly wages.
The productivity rates in the warehouse should be more reasonable, according to the ALU. It wants the company to raise wages, as well as give workers more paid breaks and vacation, among other demands.
The ALU was a contender to win the warehouse. It is a grassroots, worker-led organization that relies on crowd funding to fund its activities.
People hold placards during a protest in support of Amazon and Starbucks workers in New York City on November 26, 2021.ALU is led by Christian Smalls, a former JFK8 manager who was fired by Amazon in 2020. Smalls said he was fired for staging a protest in the early weeks of the coronaviruses to call for stronger safety measures.
Smalls became a leader of worker activism at Amazon. He set up a guillotine outside the Washington, D.C. mansion of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos to call for higher wages.
Amazon executives were interested in Smalls activism. According to a leaked memo, David Zapolsky, Amazon's general counsel, referred to Smalls as not smart or articulate in a meeting.
Amazon has a warehouse in Alabama. After determining that Amazon interfered in the first election, the National Labor Relations Board called for a do-over election.
The Covid epidemic hit the U.S. in early 2020. A group of repair technicians at a Delaware warehouse voted against joining the International Association of Machinists and Aeronautical Workers in the last union vote before the first election in Bessemer.
The outcome is still too close to call after the vote tally in Bessemer. The union was opposed by 993 votes and in favor by 825. The outcome is dependent on some 416 ballots that remain challenged by Amazon and the RWDSU. The ballots will be opened and counted after a hearing by the National Labor Relations Board.
Amazon workers in Alabama voted down unionization.
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