Amazon argues in its legal filing that union organizers and the National Labor Relations Board acted in a way that tarnished the results. According to reports, the company presented 25 objections to the results of the vote, accusing organizers of intimidating workers to vote in favor of a union, among other complaints.
Amazon claims that union organizers interrupted mandatory meetings held by the company to persuade employees to reject voting for a union which “intentionally created hostile confrontations in front of eligible voters.” The e-commerce giant has also accused union organizers of improperly polling workers.
Even before the vote, Amazon had intentions of challenging the results of the vote stemming from a lawsuit filed by the National Labor Relations Board in March. The government agency tasked with enforcing labor laws worked to compel Amazon to reinstate a fired employee who had led a protest calling for Amazon to do more to protect workers from COVID-19 in the early days of the pandemic.
Amazon claims that the NLRB tainted the election by creating the impression of support for the union by filing a lawsuit on behalf of the fired employee.
Kelly Nantel, an Amazon spokesperson, said in a statement, “Based on the evidence we’ve seen so far, as set out in our objections, we believe that the actions of the NLRB and the ALU improperly suppressed and influenced the vote, and we think the election should be conducted again so that a fair and broadly representative vote can be had.”
Eric Milner, an attorney representing the workers, called Amazon’s claims “patently absurd.”
He said of the vote, “The employees have spoken,” and added, “Amazon is choosing to ignore that, and instead engage in stalling tactics to avoid the inevitable — coming to the bargaining table and negotiating for a contract.”
The vote, held on April 1, saw 2,654 Amazon workers, approximately 55%, vote in favor of a union. There were 67 ballots disputed by Amazon or the Amazon Labor Union.
Amazon has spent $4.2 million on labor consultants over the past year according to a filing released earlier this month and is reportedly spending $10,000 plus expenses a day on three anti-union consultants: Russell Brown, Rebecca Smith and Bill Monroe.
A hearing over the objections is set to take place in the coming weeks.