The fledgling union that earlier this year secured a record labor victory at Amazon is scheduled to go up against the corporation once more with the hope of racking up further victories that would persuade the reluctant retail juggernaut to enter into negotiations.
This time, the Amazon Labor Union (ALU) and the second-largest private employer in the country are in conflict in the New York state hamlet of Schodack, which is close to Albany. On Monday, employees at the nearby warehouse, which, according to Amazon, employs about 800 people, will complete voting in a union election. The National Labor Relations Board will total the votes on Tuesday.
Although there are many factors working against us, Sarah Chaudhry, an 18-year-old who has been organizing employees since joining the company two months ago, said, "I think there's absolutely a large probability we might win." I won't curse it.
The ALU is battling Amazon for the third time after defeating the company at a Staten Island site in April. The area around the state capital is one of the most unionized metro areas in the nation, according to Unionstats.com. Even those who were sympathetic to the union's demands for a $30 hourly salary and better working conditions for warehouse workers were surprised by that victory—the first ever for an Amazon plant in the US.
But soon enough, difficulties started to show themselves. The union's momentum was somewhat dampened by a loss in May at a second, nearby warehouse. When some prominent organizers departed the group, cracks became apparent.
The union wasted time and money elsewhere trying to secure its one victory. Amazon claims that the NLRB's Brooklyn field office and the ALU tainted the vote. The corporation submitted more than two dozen objections to the agency in an effort to request a second election, starting a protracted process that might take years to complete.
A federal labor official who presided over the hearings issued a negative decision against the corporation last month. The company has stated it will appeal the decision. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy hinted in a recent interview that the ecommerce behemoth would take the dispute to federal court.
John Logan, the director of labor and employment studies at San Francisco State University, declared that Amazon was prepared to battle this to the last end. And the Amazon Labor Union will never have adequate negotiating power if there is just one warehouse, according to the dilemma.
Amazon object
According to experts, the Albany election gives the ALU a chance to demonstrate that their victory was not an exception. Three months after joining the company and one month after the Staten Island victory, Heather Goodall, the facility's principal worker organizer, initiated the campaign at the warehouse in May. She claimed that the death of her son, who committed himself six years ago while working for a major corporation, inspired her to unionize.
Goodall said, "I have a 17-year-old and a 15-year-old who attend the school system in the area where Amazon conducts its business, so when I heard that there were working circumstances that were questionable in my own neighborhood, I wanted to check firsthand what was going on."
Amazon started a campaign of its own to delay the planning process. The corporation attempted to convince employees at the Schodack site to oppose the union by holding required meetings there, as it did with other warehouses. Additionally, it posted flyers and signs asking employees to "vote no" around the warehouse.
One sign displayed on a screen at the facility read, "Don't sign an ALU card." "The ALU has not been tried or tested."
According to Paul Flaningan, an Amazon representative, "We've always said that we want our employees to have their thoughts heard, and we hope and expect this procedure allows for that."
difficulties in gaining support
Amazon employees at a different plant in Moreno Valley, California, filed for their own union election last week in an effort to join the ALU. Seven-year warehouse employee Nannette Plascencia said she and her coworkers have been trying to organize the space for more than two years, but it has been difficult to get enough support due to the company's infamously high turnover rate.
With 416 disputed ballots still awaiting resolution, another election sponsored by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) at a warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, is still too close to call. The union made a second attempt to organize there in February and March after losing a previous attempt that it appealed.
Organizing Amazon warehouses is a considerably more difficult task than organizing Starbucks locations, where unionization votes have been cast in the hundreds in the last year. The facilities may have hundreds or thousands of workers. Additionally, accumulating sufficient voter turnout for an election might take months.
Tim Platt, an Amazon employee who has been rallying support for the campaign under the name Carolina Amazonians United for Solidarity and Empowerment, or CAUSE, said that Amazon warehouse workers at a facility in Garner, North Carolina, a suburb of Raleigh, have been organizing for months and intend to file for an election before the end of September next year. To be certain of the outcome by the time employees begin voting, organizers are taking their time to apply for an election.
Workers there made the decision not to support the ALU, although organizers continue to regularly work together. Workers might eventually join a different union, according to Platt. They have spoken with the Teamsters, who last month established a branch devoted to organizing Amazon employees. But according to Platt, their primary priority right now is organizing.
The union is attempting to assist other workers in establishing their own organising committees across the nation, according to Mendoza, the ALU's head of communications. However, their primary focus will be submitting election petitions and increasing support at the workplace where the unionization vote was successful in case it needs to call for an action, like a strike.
Two full-time employees have been hired by the union to assist with meetings and training. Additionally, they were able to acquire office space in Staten Island thanks to a $250,000 gift from the American Federation of Teachers. Mendoza added that although it takes time, they are growing their support.
He added, "You can win some elections and lose some." "Unlike Amazon, we're not interested with a specific outcome. Losing one is incredibly unaffordable.
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