By Sebastian Herrera
Amazon.com Inc. employees at an Alabama warehouse voted not to
unionize, bringing an end to a closely watched effort to organize
workers at the tech giant.
The result hands Amazon a victory in its biggest battle yet
against unionization efforts that have fueled a national debate
over working conditions at one of the largest employers in the
U.S.
Here is what you need to know about the election results:
What are the election results?
Amazon workers at the Bessemer, Ala., warehouse facility
overwhelmingly voted against unionization. An estimated 71% of
workers voted against joining the Retail, Wholesale and Department
Store Union, according to the National Labor Relations Board, which
on Friday finished counting all the votes that weren't challenged.
The federal agency has yet to certify the results but noted that
there aren't enough challenged ballots to overturn the results.
The count came a day after NLRB officials began tallying the
votes in a process that was streamed on a videoconference observed
by union organizers, Amazon officials and reporters.
What happens next?
Each side has about a week to contest results before the NLRB
certifies the outcome. The union said it would appeal the vote,
accusing Amazon of violating legal restrictions governing
unionization campaigns. Amazon has said it followed the law in
communicating with employees before and during the election. The
appeal would seek to overturn results of the election or have it
held again. The union is expected to take issue with meetings
Amazon held with Bessemer employees and a mailbox the company
pushed to install outside the facility.
Why has this election received so much attention?
Amazon, already one of the country's most powerful companies
before the pandemic, has grown substantially in the past year.
Amazon made $386.1 billion in sales in 2020 and saw its share price
rise about 76%. Union supporters say the company's success, when
weighed against the working conditions of its hourly workers,
represents a symbol of the overbearing power of big tech companies
and inequality plaguing America. President Biden and other
high-profile figures have weighed in to support the Bessemer
workers.
The union battle has heightened emotions between company
representatives and union supporters. Dave Clark, a senior Amazon
executive, recently criticized independent Sen. Bernie Sanders's
visit to Alabama on March 26 to meet with workers. Mr. Clark
pointed out that the minimum wage in Vermont, which Mr. Sanders
represents, is lower than Amazon's starting wage. Mr. Sanders said
Amazon's wealth and success should enable the company to provide
higher pay to its employees while easing some of its workplace
policies. "They know if you succeed here, it will spread all over
this country," Mr. Sanders said of Amazon during his visit. Sen.
Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) has also publicly expressed support for the
union, as have celebrities like Tina Fey and Danny Glover.
Why did workers organize?
RWDSU leaders have said they believe the coronavirus pandemic,
together with the past year's civil-rights movements in America and
tense political climate, has encouraged people to act. The union
has touched on themes related to racial empowerment, as many of the
employees at the Amazon warehouse are Black and have been involved
in the Black Lives Matter movement. Labor experts say that
unionizing in Bessemer could lead to similar efforts at other
Amazon facilities. The company employs roughly 950,000 people in
the U.S., most at its warehouses across the country.
Even after the unionization effort in Alabama, Amazon faces
pressure from staff world-wide to make changes to its working
conditions. Amazon employees outside of Alabama are gathering
petition signatures, discussing potential strikes and consulting
with unions about possible demands. The groups are seeking to alter
company policies on the rate at which they must prepare packages as
well as break time and shift schedules. Such issues are central for
many employees amid Amazon's expansion and push to speed up
delivery times.
Would a union change Amazon?
Initially, not much would change. If a facility were to
unionize, Amazon would have to start working toward a contract with
workers in that location. Eventually, it could push the company to
alter its policies, such as break times or pay. Many employees have
also long sought change to the rate at which they work, with
employees typically having to fulfill hundreds of items per working
hour, while the company monitors them closely.
Amazon helped boost pay for low-wage workers in 2018 when it
raised its hourly rate to $15 an hour, though it simultaneously did
away with certain incentive pay and stock compensation. The company
the next year committed to retraining one-third of its workforce,
in part to help its employees move into more advanced jobs inside
the company or find new careers outside of it.
Amazon is in a favorable position to handle threats to its
business. Roughly 40% of online sales are made on Amazon, according
to market research firm eMarketer. The company's recent success has
come up among some workers, who point to its profit and growth as a
sign that Amazon could make changes to improve conditions.
Why has Amazon opposed unionization?
Many companies don't favor unions because it can limit
flexibility and force them to negotiate on workplace issues that
executives might want to set on their own terms. Although Amazon
has dealt with labor unions among its employees in Europe for
years, the company has opposed unionization attempts in the U.S. in
the past.
An effort backed by the RWDSU in 2018 to organize employees at
Amazon-owned Whole Foods Market fizzled. About four years earlier,
a small number of maintenance and repair technicians voted down a
unionization attempt at a Middletown, Del., facility. During the
Whole Foods campaign, Amazon used a training video to coach Whole
Foods staff on how to spot organizing efforts. The company has said
this video is no longer in use.
And last year, Amazon posted -- and later removed -- job
listings for analysts that included descriptions on monitoring
labor-organizing threats. Amazon has said the postings weren't an
accurate description of the roles and were made in error.
How did each side campaign in the vote?
Organizers set up a presence outside the 855,000-square-foot
warehouse on an almost daily basis, talking to workers, handing
them leaflets and calling them. The union also launched an
information website and sought to garner support by rallying
employees through family members and union members who work in
other industries.
Meanwhile, Amazon created a website -- DoItWithoutDues.com -- to
encourage workers to vote against unionizing. Signs were posted
around the facility, and managers initially held frequent meetings
there with workers. A central focus of the company's message
revolves around the cost of union dues. Amazon has argued that a
union is unnecessary because its workers receive better pay and
benefits from the company than they would in other comparable jobs.
Amazon hasn't made as clear to workers, however, that Alabama is a
so-called "right to work" state, meaning employees would have an
option on whether to be union members and pay dues.
Amazon has sought to highlight its $15-an-hour pay and benefits,
even as the company has come under fire from critics over its
working conditions and tax payments. The company recently
apologized for a tweet published on March 24 by its news account
that incorrectly challenged accounts of workers having to at times
urinate in bottles because of Amazon's demanding schedule to
deliver packages. The company said that while warehouse employees
are able to use the restroom when needed, "We know that drivers can
and do have trouble finding restrooms because of traffic or
sometimes rural routes."
Amazon has also defended itself on Twitter over its wages and
other matters. Twitter Inc. recently permanently suspended several
accounts that had purported to be Amazon warehouse employees,
according to a Twitter spokesman. The accounts had resembled those
of "FC Ambassadors," warehouse workers which Amazon has enlisted to
post about the company on social media, including with comments
that often defend it or speak positively about working conditions.
Amazon said it didn't have any connections to the fake
accounts.
Write to Sebastian Herrera at Sebastian.Herrera@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 09, 2021 14:55 ET (18:55 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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