As Amazon workers in Alabama vote on unionization, Amazon tried and failed to get approval to install cameras to watch ballot boxes.
Amazon is notoriously anti-union, resorting to Pinkerton detectivesand illegal firings to discourage unionization efforts. When Alabama warehouse employees decided to vote on unionization, the company even put signs in bathroom stalls to pressure employees to vote no. Amazon’s efforts prompted investors to warn the company to back off its pressure campaign.
In its latest effort, the company wanted to install cameras to watch the ballot boxes between counting. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) denied the company’s petition, according to CNBC.
“Though the mail ballot election in this matter is large, it is not, as the Employer asserts, of a ‘special nature,’” said Lisa Henderson, acting regional director at the NLRB. “The Region will conduct the ballot count within view of observers participating via virtual platform as well as in-person observers, and in accordance with Agency procedures and protocols, including those for securing ballot boxes.”
It remains to be seen if the vote will pass but, if it does, the Alabama facility will be the first US Amazon facility to unionize. Such a move would pave the way for other Amazon facilities to do the same, and likely have a significant impact on the company’s business operations.
