Amazon Labor Union Files For NLRB Election In California (Again.)
The election petition comes less than two weeks after the NLRB issued its Cemex decision that, if the ALU has a majority support, could lead to an easier path to unionization.
On Thursday, the Amazon Labor Union (ALU)—an independent union that won an election to represent workers at an Amazon facility in Staten Island, New York in April 2022—filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to hold an election at an Amazon facility in California.
The petition states that the petitioned-for unit has 800 employees and the union is seeking to include:
“All hourly full time and regular part time employees, inbound and outbound fulfillment center associates employed at the Employer's ONT8 building located at 24300 Nandina Ave, Moreno Valley California, including all employees in the unit who have worked an average of four (4) hours each week for the 13 weeks immediately preceeding [sic] the eligibility date for the election.”
However, according to the petition, the union is seeking to exclude
“Delivery Truck drivers, seasonal employees, temporary employees, clerical employees, professional employees, managerial employees, engineering employees, maintenance employees, robotica employees, information technology employees, delivery associates, loss prevention employees, on-site medical employees, guards and supervisors as defined by the Act”
Although the ALU won the Staten Island election in April 2022, Amazon has contested the election outcome, despite the NLRB’s ordering the company to bargain with the ALU.
Since its Staten Island win, the ALU has failed to unionize any other Amazon workers. Following its April 2022 victory, the ALU has lost two other elections: One in May 2022 (also in Staten Island) and the other outside of Albany, New York, where the union was beaten nearly two to one.
In California, the ALU filed a petition in October 2022 (before later withdrawing it) for the same Moreno Valley location.
However, this latest move to have the NLRB hold a secret-ballot election at the Moreno Valley facility comes less than two weeks after the NLRB issued its Cemex decision, making it easier to unionize workers without an election through NLRB bargaining orders.
While it is unknown whether the ALU has the support of a majority of the employees— which would be required in order for the union to have the NLRB issue a bargaining order—it is noteworthy that the law firm representing the ALU is the same law firm that represents Trader Joe’s United and was the first law firm to file for a ‘Cemex Bargaining Order’ following the NLRB’s decision.
Under the new Cemex standard, the only way the ALU would be able to obtain a bargaining order from the NLRB is if a) the union had a majority of the 800 employees’ signatures and b) if Amazon were to commit unfair labor practices that would, according to the NLRB, “require setting aside the election.”
If, however, the ALU deploys the same strategy it did in Staten Island, which was to file a petition with the minimum thirty percent of employee signatures, it can still move forward with an election, and hope for an outcome like Staten Island.
