TechnologyAnalysis: Amazon s win in union fight shows harsh realities facing labor movement
Mike SpectorJeffrey Dastin
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The logo of Amazon is pictured inside the company s office in Bengaluru, India, April 20, 2018. REUTERS/Abhishek N. Chinnappa/File Photo
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Amazon.com Inc s (AMZN.O) fierce resistance to unionization, skepticism among workers that organizing could get them a better deal and decisions on election parameters all contributed to the apparently lopsided defeat of a labor drive at the company s warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, people close to the events said.
A vote by workers on whether to unionize failed on Friday by a more than 2-to-1 margin in a major win for the world s largest online retailer. The union plans to challenge the results based on Amazon s conduct during the election. read more
Amazon may have won when the warehouse workers in Alabama voted against the formation of a union. However, the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union (RWDSU) is not convinced that it was the real result of the voting, so it has filed almost two dozen objections.
RWDSU claimed intimidation during the Amazon union voting
As per Reuters, the RWDSU formally objected to the election results on Friday, April 16, by filing the objections and stating that Amazon’s conduct during the election was questionable. The union alleged that Jeff Bezos’ company tried to prevent the workers from exercising their choice.
In the union’s filing, they suggested that the workers were intimidated, so they would not vote for the formation of the union in the Alabama warehouse. The RWDSU said that the employees were probably threatened to be laid off by Amazon, saying that they were prevented from a free and uncoerced exercise of choice on whether to organize the first-ever company union in t
Union files objections to Amazon election results, alleging layoffs were threatened
By Jeffrey Dastin
Reuters
(Reuters) - A labor group that did not secure enough votes from Amazon.com Inc warehouse workers in Alabama to form a union has formally objected to the election results and alleged the online retailer threatened to lay off staff, according to a government filing.
Amazon has denied the outcome resulted from intimidation of its employees and said it did not threaten layoffs or a facility closure.
Late on Friday, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) submitted nearly two dozen objections to Amazon s conduct during the election, which it said prevented employees from a free and uncoerced exercise of choice on whether to create the company s first-ever U.S. union.
The grocery startup said it would challenge the results.
The election represents a win for unions among delivery workers after recent setbacks.
Delivery drivers at Imperfect Foods have reportedly won an election to form a union.
Bloomberg first reported on Friday that a group of the grocery delivery startup s drivers in Northern California had won an election overseen by the U.S. National Labor Relations Board. Results showed that 28 drivers had voted to unionize while 23 were against it. The union would represent about 80 employees if it materializes, according to the report.
Imperfect Foods got its start in 2015, mainly selling produce that did not meet supermarkets cosmetic standards but was still edible. Since then, it has added other kinds of food, such as fresh meats and beauty products. The roster of customers for its weekly grocery deliveries has exploded thanks, in part, to the pandemic.
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