Well -- We Knew The Objections And Appeals Would Come -- In The Amazon / Staten Island Union Election Matter. They Already Have.

So. . . it may be over a year, before we know for certain that the union is representing the Staten Island workers. But I think it is. . . inevitable now. The tide has turned. Here's the start of the litigation over it, though, below.

Amazon's claim that a single employee's lawsuit, seeking reinstatement (because Amazon chose to fire him). . . was somehow an unfair advocacy of the union. . . is dubious at best. Just because (in my experienced opinion, dealing with mining unions) he became a union advocate, and decided to sue to regain his job (a Constitutionally-protected right). . . cannot (without more) make out any violation of the NLRA or the NLRB rules.

In any event, this is from this morning's The Guardian UK on it all -- very well researched, and balanced:

. . .In a filing last week, the company disclosed it spent about $4.2m last year on labor consultants.

In another objection, Amazon targeted organizers’ distribution of cannabis to workers, saying the labor board “cannot condone such a practice as a legitimate method of obtaining support for a labor organization”.

New York legalized the recreational use of marijuana last year for those over 21. Milner, the attorney representing the union, said Amazon is grasping at straws.

Distributing cannabis “is no different than distributing free T-shirts and it certainly did not act to interfere with the election”, he said. . . .

The retailer had signaled it planned to challenge the election results because of a lawsuit the NLRB filed in March in which the board sought to force Amazon to reinstate a fired employee who was involved in the union drive.

The company pointed to the lawsuit in one of its objections filed on Friday, saying the regional NLRB office that brought the suit “failed to protect the integrity and neutrality of its procedures” and had created an impression of support for the union by seeking reinstatement for the former employee, Gerald Bryson. . . .

In other objections, Amazon targeted how the labor agency conducted the election. It said the agency failed to control media presence around the voting area and didn’t have enough staff and equipment, which the company says created long lines and “discouraged many employees from voting in subsequent polling sessions”.

Both Amazon and the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU), a union that spearheaded a separate union drive in Bessemer, Alabama, have filed objections to that election.

The final outcome in Alabama is still up in the air with 416 outstanding challenged ballots hanging in the balance. Initial results show the union down by 118 votes, with the majority of Amazon warehouse workers rejecting a bid to form unionize.

RWDSU, which filed more than 20 objections, said in its filing Thursday that its objections are “grounds to set the election aside”. . . .

So, a long road ahead, in both Alabama and on Staten Island. But it would seem clear (as we said) that the union has the upper hand in the New York election matter now.

नमस्ते