Organizers get another chance at flipping Amazon fulfillment centers to union shops after suffering humiliating setbacks last year.
Union organizers held a vote at an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, and experienced a stunning loss in 2021. More than 70 percent of the 6,100 workers voted against joining the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU). After union bosses cried foul, the U.S. National Labor Relations Board intervened and called for a re-vote. Those ballots have been cast, and a decision is expected before the end of March.
“They’re afraid of losing pay, afraid of losing benefits, or their job,” Amazon employee and union organizer Jennifer Bates reportedly said. “Those are the tactics Amazon is using. They want to confuse the employees. We often tell them, we have to go through negotiations, what they have is protected.”
Although pro-union support rippled through much of the media, reports also indicate workers are concerned joining the RWDSU will only hurt them financially. Employees at the Alabama fulfillment center typically earn double the state’s minimum wage. Many left other jobs to join the Amazon workforce because of the significantly higher pay and perks.
“I still make $3 more an hour than I did before. If it weren’t for Amazon’s pay and benefits, we would be struggling to afford a place to live,” Kylee Rancour reportedly said. “I’m very worried about what would happen should the union be voted in. It could mean sacrificing benefits in exchange for things we don’t want or need.”
Amazon employees concerned about losing money, healthcare, 401(k), or their jobs may have reason for worry. One of the country’s largest employers, Amazon scuttled a plan to build offices and hire thousands of New Yorkers after activists and politicians opposed a tax incentive.
The e-commerce and last mile delivery giant also faces union votes in the Big Apple. A group of pro-union workers managed to successfully petition for a vote at a pair of Staten Island facilities. At one of the sites, called JFK8, organizers orchestrated walk-outs during the height of the pandemic.
The current union effort is being led by Chris Smalls, a former Amazon employee who was fired under a dark cloud. Smalls’ effort to hold a union vote in 2021 fell far short of the requirements. He failed to secure enough signatures for his federal application to compel a vote on his upstart Amazon Labor Union.
“We’ve had plenty of small victories along the way,” Smalls reportedly said. “We want to apply pressure and can still make more changes. We want to put workers in the driver’s seat.”
More than 7,500 employees have a decision to make at JFK8, with a vote running through March 30. At the other Staten Island warehouse, called LDJ5, 1,500 workers are expected to vote during the week of April 25.
Sources: wsj.com, reuters.com, bbc.com
I would close Amazon in those states in Bezos place,,screw union they are leaches
IF the union gets voted in hopefully Amazon will shut down the warehouse and move. Unions nowadays are nothing but leeches and protect the worthless workers.
I’ve seen unions destroy businesses and would hope people don’t fall for their lie’s
Unions support demoncrat polilticans, abortion, they are anti family. They support the lgbtq agenda, which seeks to sexualize young children. MY guess is amazon screams for a union. But do not cut your nose off to spite your face.
Screw biggie.smalls and screw unions.. we dont need them nomo fosho
Nothing says liberalism better than vote until you get the desired outcome
If the truckers were in a union, they would be way better off financially. They get screwed and not kissed.
Anti-Union workers have no clue about reality. The reason for the prevailing wage which Republicans ruined with their “Right to work law”1970 guaranteed the wage you get as minimum today instead of $.50 cents an hour and a 7 day work week. Propaganda to undermine workers right in every aspect of life has prevailed to ruin workers with big money advertisement. The small amount of corrupt union bosses which don’t compare with the massive abuse of non-union Corporate and small business boss is their mantra for advertisement. When your ego about the lazy workers want unions subsides and you get older, watch what happens to you when they kick you out the door with no security. Unions provide security and they are the only sane option in a country with companies who could care less about their workers and will sell the company and leave you all behind. Use your Brain. I have been with with no-union and union companies my whole life and Unions ROCK!
You non union suckers have no idea what youre talking about.
Amazon makes Billions and the cheapskate Bezos can afford to pay his workers more.
Im a union driver and can make more money in one day than you non union guys make in a week.
Yes you genius’s are correct. Unions suck!
I hated the 13 paid holidays and week after week of paid annual vacation.
I hated my gross earnings of over $40,000 in 1979 running division for PIE.
I hated my gross earnings of $93,000 in 1995 running sleeper for CF.
I hated the high pay throughout my 33 year career…each and every year.
I hated the terms and conditions the Union provided that made sure I was treated fairly and decently and driving safe equipment.
I hated that we had a real voice at work, voting on everything, with experienced agents to help us in any time of need.
I hated the no cost Union PPO healthcare that paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for my wifes and sons cancer treatment that cured them, the dental insurance that paid for braces and crowns, and the vision coverage for glasses and contact lenses.
But what really burned my ass was being able to retire at 54 years of age in 2011 and receiving a $4,339 per month pension, with extremely low cost top-notch health-dental-prescription-vision insurance (Anthem Blue Cross PPO) for the rest of my and my wifes life.
It was very upsetting not having lots of chrome, chicken lights, echo cb radio with dual antennas, and plastic lugnut covers like the big strappers getting half of my pay, many with no benefits either.
Thank god so many drivers know their worth and are happy to work for so little. Hopefully they can continue to knock off high-paying Union jobs, hopefully maybe even down to $15 an hour. And skip those Union benefits too. They suck too and drivers don’t need them any more.
I’ve only collected over half a million dollars from the Western Conference of Teamsters Pension Trust Fund since I retired December 1 2011. With my social security I only get $75,000 a year to live on, dammit!
For this the Union ripped me off for two hours of my hourly pay rate each month in Union dues. They got so rich off of me the dirty bastards.
What honestly bothered me the most were the Union drivers who resented the morons in this industry with their below-average IQ’s, who were only trying their best to assist the companies and accept low wages-benefits-working conditions, at the expense of other drivers.
Yep Unions suck.
Labor unions are fine – if you don’t mind renting your job from a third party who uses your payments to support politicians and causes you otherwise wouldn’t. Labor unions are fine – if you’re the employee who doesn’t fit the definition of “worker”. Labor union “organizers” promise the world but, like every other politician, deliver a handful of useless clay. I quit one company when my fellow drivers voted to be (mis)represented by the UAW (U Ain’t Working) because of what was promised. Two years later they voted the union out when their customer base started looking elsewhere and nothing that was promised appeared.
Pure Republican propaganda, you whine about paying $50 a month to a third party to get $500-3000 a month more in union worker fought perks that took a century to gain. They take that money to fight against the Republican backed multination Corporations and lobbyist that have billions to gain when cutting worker benefits. When your quit watch, your benefits will drop off the cliff as soon as they can and stagnate . Wait till you get sick or injured or fired. You started at the top and blew it not knowing what a good thing was when you had it. Don’t worry about the customer base, sounds like an employer wrote this. Worry about doing your best effort as worker and let higher management worry about customer base, marketing, profit ratio, CEO salaries , efficiency and not blame it on the worker for their poor management.
Yes you genius’s are correct. Unions suck!
I hated the 13 paid holidays and week after week of paid annual vacation.
I hated my gross earnings of over $40,000 in 1979 running division for PIE.
I hated my gross earnings of $93,000 in 1995 running sleeper for CF.
I hated the high pay throughout my 33 year career…each and every year.
I hated the terms and conditions the Union provided that made sure I was treated fairly and decently and driving safe equipment.
I hated that we had a real voice at work, voting on everything, with experienced agents to help us in any time of need.
I hated the no cost Union PPO healthcare that paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for my wifes and sons cancer treatment that cured them, the dental insurance that paid for braces and crowns, and the vision coverage for glasses and contact lenses.
But what really burned my ass was being able to retire at 54 years of age in 2011 and receiving a $4,339 per month pension, with extremely low cost top-notch health-dental-prescription-vision insurance (Anthem Blue Cross PPO) for the rest of my and my wifes life.
It was very upsetting not having lots of chrome, chicken lights, echo cb radio with dual antennas, and plastic lugnut covers like the big strappers getting half of my pay, many with no benefits either.
Thank god so many drivers know their worth and are happy to work for so little. Hopefully they can continue to knock off high-paying Union jobs, hopefully maybe even down to $15 an hour. And skip those Union benefits too. They suck too and drivers don’t need them any more.
I’ve only collected over half a million dollars from the Western Conference of Teamsters Pension Trust Fund since I retired December 1 2011. With my social security I only get $75,000 a year to live on, dammit!
For this the Union ripped me off for two hours of my hourly pay rate each month in Union dues. They got so rich off of me the dirty bastards.
What honestly bothered me the most were the Union drivers who resented the morons in this industry with their below-average IQ’s, who were only trying their best to assist the companies and accept low wages-benefits-working conditions, at the expense of other drivers.
Yep Unions suck.