PROTECTING THE EXERCISE BY WORKERS OF FULL FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION: GIVING THE NLRB THE TOOLS IT NEEDS TO UPHOLD THE NLRA

A Note by Sam Smith

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On April 9, 2021, Amazon defeated a unionization effort to unionize at their fulfillment center in Bessemer, Alabama after a hotly contested election featuring significant campaigning by both the company and the Union.[1] The Union immediately petitioned the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”) alleging several violations of the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA” or the “Act”) by Amazon,[2] which resulted in the NLRB setting aside the original vote and ordering a new election. [3] The NLRB also reached a settlement with Amazon over its general anti-labor practices in December 2021, forcing the company to issue communications to its over 1.5 million employees informing them of their rights under the NLRA.[4]

[1] See Alina Selyukh, Amazon Warehouse Workers get to Re-do Their Union Vote in Alabama, Nat’l Pub. Radio (Nov. 29, 2021), https://www.npr.org/2021/11/29/1022384731/amazon-warehouse-workers-get-to-re-do-their-union-vote-in-alabama.

[2] See id.

[3] See id.

[4] See Amazon Unionization Efforts get a Boost Under a Settlement with U.S. Labor Board, Nat’l Pub. Radio (Dec. 23, 2021), https://www.npr.org/2021/12/23/1067698799/amazon-nlrb-union.