(AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File)
Darn it I was rooting for both sides to lose. Alas, the unionization fight between Amazon and certain members of both political parties has come to an end, according to the New York Times. And it’s a rather lopsided end at that:
Amazon appeared to beat back the most significant labor drive in its history on Friday, when an initial tally showed that workers at its giant warehouse in Alabama had voted decisively against forming a union.
Workers cast at least 1,608 votes against a union, giving Amazon enough to defeat the effort, as ballots in favor of a union trailed at 696, according to a preliminary count. Hundreds of votes remained to be tallied, but are not enough to bridge Amazon’s margin of victory. Once the count is complete, the results will still need to be certified by federal officials.
It’s A No: Amazon Warehouse Workers Vote Against Unionizing In Historic Election
By Alina Selyukh
April 9, 2021
Amazon warehouse workers in Alabama will not be forming a union.
The vast majority of votes cast by Amazon’s workers in Bessemer, Ala., were against joining the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union in a stinging defeat of the union drive. The final tally showed 1,798 votes against unionizing and 738 votes in favor of the union.
That means Amazon has withstood the largest union push yet among its U.S. workers despite celebrity endorsements, including implied solidarity from President Biden. Building on years of successfully fighting off labor organizing, the company avoided the prospect of its first unionized warehouse in America.
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The votes haven’t all been counted in the first attempt to unionize a large Amazon facility in the US, but the union involved has already said it will likely challenge the election results. The current count strongly favors Amazon.
“Our system is broken, Amazon took full advantage of that, and we will be calling on the labor board to hold Amazon accountable for its illegal and egregious behavior during the campaign,” Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union (RWDSU) president Stuart Appelbaum said in a statement to Recode on Thursday evening.
Bill Barrow/AP
toggle caption Bill Barrow/AP
Workers at Amazon s facility in Bessemer, Ala., held a historic vote on whether to form the company s first warehouse union. Bill Barrow/AP
Amazon warehouse workers in Alabama will not be forming a union.
The vast majority of votes cast by Amazon s workers in Bessemer, Ala., were against joining the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union in a stinging defeat of the union drive. The final tally showed 1,798 votes against unionizing and 738 votes in favor of the union.
That means Amazon has withstood the largest union push yet among its U.S. workers despite celebrity endorsements, including implied solidarity from President Biden. Building on years of successfully fighting off labor organizing, the company avoided the prospect of its first unionized warehouse in America.