Amazon workers in New York make history by voting to form union
Amazon workers in New York have voted to form a union in what labor leaders are calling a “historic victory” against the US’s second largest employer.
In Staten Island, New York, 2,654 warehouse workers voted yes to forming a union, while 2,131 voted no, according to a tally by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
Meanwhile, in another union vote, Amazon workers in Bessemer, Alabama, appear to have rejected a union bid – but outstanding challenged ballots could change the outcome. The votes were 993 to 875 against the union. A hearing to review 416 challenged ballots is expected to begin in the next few days.
The Staten Island victory marks the first successful US organizing effort in the company’s history. Organizers have faced an uphill battle against Amazon, which now employs over one million people in the US and is making every effort to keep unions out.
Seth Goldstein, a pro bono attorney who has represented the Amazon Labor Union in Staten Island through their election proceedings, said: “Worker engagement has been the key to this historic victory and can be attributed to increased nationwide union organizing in digital, tech, non-profit, and Starbucks. Gen Z and Millennial workers are leading the charge in union organizing.”
John Logan, director of labor and employment studies at San Francisco State University, said the early vote counts in New York have been “shocking”. The nascent Amazon Labor Union (ALU), which led the charge on Staten Island, has no backing from an established union and is powered by former and current warehouse workers.
“I don’t think that many people thought that the Amazon Labor Union had much of a chance of winning at all,” Logan said. “And I think we’re likely to see more of those
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