Despite NLRB Director's Ruling, Amazon Labor Union May Have To Wait Years To Bargain
The online retailer's appeal of a NLRB Regional Director's decision may take years to resolve.
Last year’s election win by the Amazon Labor Union to represent roughly 8,000 employees of the online retailer’s JFK8 facility in Staten Island, New York was certified by a regional director of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on Wednesday.
However, that does not mean Amazon will immediately sit down and begin bargaining with the union. In fact, the case may still take years to resolve and the outcome is far from certain.
Last April, following the Amazon Labor Union’s election victory, the company filed numerous election objections (read in full here) accusing both the union and the National Labor Relations Board of misconduct.
Earlier this week, the Regional Director of the NLRB’s Phoenix office, where the objections hearing took place, rejected Amazon’s objections and proceeded to certify the election results.
However, there are still legal hurdles that are likely to occur before Amazon ever sits down with the Amazon Labor Union and, in the end, the federal courts, may decide the NLRB erred in certifying the election.
As Bloomberg writers Josh Eidelson and Matt Day explain:
Despite the union’s latest win, the battle with Amazon isn’t over. The Seattle-based company can now appeal the ruling to labor board members in Washington, where Democrats hold a majority. If it loses that appeal, it could simply refuse to negotiate with the union, setting in motion another series of complaints and appeals that could take months or years to play out.
To that end, Amazon has stated it will appeal the NLRB Regional Director’s decision.
“We knew it was unlikely that the NLRB regional office would rule against itself, and intend to appeal,” Amazon spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said in a press statement.
“As we’ve said since the beginning, we don’t believe this election process was fair, legitimate or representative of the majority of what our team wants,” she added, explaining that the company will make an appeal.