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Amazon.com Inc. could be required to bargain with a grassroots union that formed at a warehouse in Staten Island, N.Y., after a U.S. labor representative on Wednesday overruled the online retailer’s objections to a union election there — a move that follows months of aggressive efforts by the company to squash the organizing effort.
However, Amazon
AMZN,
can still request a review of that decision from the National Labor Relations Board, as long as the company does so by Jan. 25. The labor board can move forward with or deny that request.
The NLRB, in a statement Wednesday, said that Cornele Overstreet, a regional director with the agency, agreed to overrule all the objections against the Amazon Labor Union and the board that had been brought by Amazon.
Christian Smalls, the union’s co-founder and president, said in a tweet that the union beat Amazon “fair and square,” and said now was the time for the company to agree to a contract. Amazon was not immediately available for comment.
Workers at the Staten Island warehouse, known as JFK8, voted last year to be represented by the Amazon Labor Union, despite heavy opposition from Amazon. Amazon later contested the union election results, accusing the labor board of effectively helping the union win that election.
After both sides made their case, a hearing officer in September “concluded that the employer’s objections should be overruled in their entirety,” the labor board said Wednesday. The regional director issued a report on Wednesday agreeing with those findings, the labor board said Wednesday.
Unionization efforts by the Amazon Labor Union ran into more difficulty elsewhere. In May, employees at a second Staten Island warehouse voted against joining the union, and workers at a facility near Albany, N.Y., in October also voted against unionizing.
Shares of Amazon finished 5.8% higher on Wednesday, but are down 43% over the past 12 months.
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