Why union vote in N.Y. is important

Amazon workers in Staten Island voted Friday to join the upstart Amazon Labor Union, becoming the first of the company’s warehouses in the U.S. to successfully vote to organize. It’s a milestone moment for Amazon workers, and for the future of the labor movement in the U.S., which has been hoping for a resurgence in the wake of the pandemic. Here’s why the union vote on Staten Island is such a big deal. Why does this particular union vote matter?

Previous attempts by Amazon workers to unionize have fizzled out or ended in workers voting against unionization. The company has always strongly opposed any initiatives to form a union by its workers, and labor organizers have accused it of using unfair tactics to squash union drives. Nationally, union participation in most industries is lower than it has been in previous decades. The Staten Island workers, led by a former Amazon worker named Chris Smalls, also formed their own union, instead of working with a big, countrywide organization with lots of resources and expertise. It’s dubbed the Amazon Labor Union.

Despite all that, the organizers managed to make their case to enough of their fellow workers to win the vote by a sizable margin. Winning this uphill battle gives the labor movement a huge symbolic win that will likely inspire other workers — at Amazon and elsewhere — to try to unionize their own workplaces. For Amazon, it means that the era of being a union-free workplace in the U.S. is over. (Some warehouses in Europe are unionized.)

Are there other attempts to get Amazon warehouses unionized?

Yes. A second, smaller Staten Island warehouse will vote at the end of April on whether to join the same union as the larger, nearby warehouse.

And in Bessemer, Ala., thousands of workers voted this year in a redo election to join the national Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. In a tally Thursday, workers cast 993 “no” votes to the union’s 875 “yes” votes. But before the counting started, both Amazon and the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) were able to challenge ballots they thought might be problematic.

Those ballots — 416 — are likely to determine the final results. But it could take weeks or months to reach a final determination as both sides litigate whether they should be included.

Bessemer workers made history last year when they were the first Amazon workers in seven years — and by far the largest group — to hold a union election. The union lost that vote by a wide margin, but federal regulators ordered a new election when they found Amazon had improperly interfered.

What does Amazon say about the union vote?

Amazon put out a statement Friday saying it was “disappointed” in the outcome of the Staten Island vote. “We believe having a direct relationship with the company is best for our employees,” the company said. It also accused the National Labor Relations Board, the independent government agency that adjudicates union elections, of “inappropriate and undue influence,” without elaborating on what that means.

The company strongly opposed unionization and has tried hard to convince its workers to vote “no.” In both Bessemer and Staten Island, Amazon hired consultants to urge workers that unions were not the best choice for them. The company used posters, text messages and held mandatory classes for workers to oppose the unions. It told workers that the unions would not necessarily guarantee greater benefits and would act as a middleman between the company and the workers.

Amazon has also defended its safety record and its pay and benefits, saying that it works hard to treat workers well.

How does this fit into the broader picture for organized labor?

Union membership rates overall declined in 2021, falling to 2019 levels. But labor unions see momentum building in the various organizing drives happening across the country — workers at several Starbucks stores have voted to unionize this year, as well as at a few media companies and at an REI store in New York. Some Apple Store employees are also working toward that goal.

The pandemic, and the resulting tight labor market, has empowered workers to demand better treatment in a way labor groups have not seen in years. Unions are trying to take advantage of this moment to bolster their ranks in different industries.

“That momentum is starting to pick up and starting to grow legs,” said newly-inaugurated Teamster general president Sean O’brien. “Employers do not treat their employees with dignity and respect and now’s the time.”

What happens next for the Amazon union in Staten Island?

Both parties have about a week to file objections to the vote. Amazon said in its statement that it is “evaluating its options” and could file objections. If it decides not to, the vote will be certified a week from now. Then the union will begin the process of bargaining for a contract, which could take weeks or months.

For now, workers affiliated with the union are celebrating.