A union representative of RWDSU holds a sign in front of the Amazon performance warehouse at the center of the union campaign on March 29, 2021 in Bessemer, Alabama.
Илия Нувелаж | Getty Images
Amazon illegally interfered in the recent union election in a warehouse in Alabama, according to a statement Thursday from the Union’s Retail, Wholesale and Department Store.
RWDSU on Thursday objected to the National Labor Council, arguing that Amazon “created an atmosphere of confusion, coercion and / or fear of repression and thus interfered with employees’ freedom of choice” to join or refuse a union.
The complaint comes a week after the NLRB completed the counting of ballots in a closely monitored election at the Amazon Implementation Center in Bessemer, Alabama. At the facility known as BHM, union supporters overtook their opponents, but 416 disputed ballots remain. Of the ballots counted, anti-union unions have only 118 votes.
The NLRB will schedule a hearing to consider the union’s objections.
RWDSU is taking advantage of the momentum in the labor movement on Amazon and beyond. Last week, workers at Amazon’s Staten Island warehouse in New York voted overwhelmingly to form Amazon’s first U.S. union, although the company is expected to object in the coming days.
And in Bessemer, the margin has shrunk since last year, when workers held an initial vote on whether to unite. In these elections, which were held by mail voting, the NLRB found Amazon’s illegal interference.
After the second election, RWDSU filed 21 objections with the NLRB, accusing Amazon of threatening workers with closing the warehouse if they organized. The union claims that Amazon has fired an employee who is an outspoken supporter of the union and has suspended another pro-union employee.
RWDSU also accused Amazon of intimidating and observing BHM1 employees during the election.
“Amazon’s behavior must not go unchallenged, and workers in Bessemer, Alabama, must be protected by law,” RWDSU President Stuart Apelbaum said in a statement.
Amazon spokesman Kelly Nantel told CNBC in a statement: “We have said from the beginning that we want the votes of our employees to be heard and we hope that the NLRB counts every valid vote.
The company also filed its own objections to RWDSU’s conduct, such as communicating with workers over a scandalous mailbox near the warehouse. He also objected to the NLRB’s decision to hold elections by post, arguing that it had suppressed voter turnout.
The NLRB may order a third election at the Bessemer facility, depending on the evidence provided by RWDSU.
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