Against all odds, Amazon workers in New York organized a successful union against one of the biggest companies in the world. Here’s how. Hey, Jeff Bezos, I’m going to let you know something today: We are just getting started,” Chris Smalls declared at an August 2020 protest in Washington, D.C. August 2020 was the month Amazon founder Jeff Bezos became the …
These Are The Workers Who Took on Amazon, and Won Read More »
No more arguing over territory or industries—we need multi-union coalitions capable of organizing on a national scale. When news spread April 1 that the independent Amazon Labor Union (ALU) had won its union election at an Amazon warehouse on Staten Island in New York, the initial response from anyone who supports the labor movement was exultation at this unprecedented?—?and unexpected?—?victory for …
The Amazon Labor Union Victory Shows That Jurisdiction Is Dead Read More »
The Amazon Labor Union, after making history in April when it won the first-ever unionized Amazon warehouse, JFK8 on Staten Island, New York, was routed in May in a second election at LDJ5, another warehouse in the same complex. Amazon waged a fierce union-busting campaign, and it worked. Out of 1,633 eligible voters, 998 cast …
Amazon Bites Back in Vote at Second New York Warehouse Read More »
One month after making history by organizing the first U.S. Amazon warehouse, workers voted against forming a union at another facility in New York. Update (May 2, 2022): Following a hard-fought campaign, the Amazon Labor Union came up short at the LDJ5 complex, with 380 workers voting in favor of the union and 618 against. In response, ALU founder Chris Smalls wrote: “Despite todays outcome …
Amazon Labor Union shows us an essential ingredient of successful union campaigns: democratic autonomy. Jeff Bezos has been brought back down to Earth. No boss is invincible. The workers at Staten Island’s JFK8 Amazon fulfillment center proved it by beating the massively rich and powerful corporation 2,654 to 2,131 in a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election on April 1. Meanwhile, a rerun …
The Amazon Union Campaign Won By Following the Lead of Workers Read More »
Madeline Messa is a 3L at Syracuse University College of Law. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in journalism. With her legal research and writing for Workplace Fairness, she strives to equip people with the information they need to be their own best advocate.
