Amazon Workers at Staten Island Warehouse Push Vote for Unionisation -

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Amazon Workers at Staten Island Warehouse Push Vote for Unionisation

Bob Carlson

February 17, 2022

Amazon Workers at Staten Island Warehouse Push Vote for Unionisation — Source: NBC

The Amazon Labor Union (ALU) said Wednesday that workers at an Amazon warehouse on Staten Island in New York City will vote on whether or not to unionize next month.

According to the ALU, which represents the workers, workers at the JFK8 warehouse will vote between March 25th and March 30th. According to the ALU, the election will be place in person at a tent outside the warehouse.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) did not confirm the dates right away, but the parties “had provisionally achieved a specified election agreement,” according to the NLRB. According to an email from NLRB spokeswoman Elliott Becker, a hearing set for Wednesday morning has been postponed awaiting the finalization of the tentative agreement.

Last month, the National Labor Relations Board concluded that attempts to unionize Amazon’s JFK8 warehouse had “reached a sufficient showing of interest” to hold an election.

The ALU has been attempting to unionize Amazon workers in New York for some time, filing a request with the NLRB in October 2021 to conduct a union election for Amazon operations on Staten Island, but then withdrawing the proposal due to a lack of signatures. It re-filed in December, focused solely on the JFK8 warehouse, where walkouts had previously occurred.

In an email to The Verge, Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel claimed the business was “skeptical” that there were enough authentic signatures from employees to back the election petition. “However, because the NLRB has ruled that the election will go forward,” Nantel added, “we want our employees to have their thoughts heard as soon as possible.” “Our employees have always had the option of joining a union, and our focus remains on working directly with our team to make Amazon a wonderful place to work,” says the company.

The JFK8 election would be the second among Amazon warehouse employees in the United States; the NLRB ordered a re-do of an election held last year at Amazon’s BHM1 facility in Bessemer, Alabama, after it was revealed that Amazon had tampered with the initial election.