If the momentum in the red state of Alabama is successful, it could galvanize more organizational efforts at Amazon and other major retailers across the country. If it fails, it can become a lightning rod for Democrats’ efforts to carry out one of the broadest expansions of collective bargaining rights in nearly a century – and, at the same time, encourage a triumphant business community to harden its stance against the organized work.
“The implications of this election go beyond this single warehouse, and even this company,” said Stuart Appelbaum, president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, which is organizing the workers. “It’s about the future of work and how workers will be treated.”
The visit by Sanders, an independent from Vermont, comes at a crucial time for the radical efforts of Democrats and President Joe Biden to rebuild the middle class, empowering workers and unions. His proposals to raise the federal minimum wage to $ 15 and facilitate union membership for employees are facing a barrier of opposition from Republicans and the business lobby, who say such measures would hurt the economy and end American jobs. And the lack of a clear majority of Democrats in the Senate will make passing any far-reaching legislation difficult.
Amazon warehouse workers – most of them women and minorities – were considered “essential” during the coronavirus pandemic and were ordered to continue working while the rest of the economy closed. Workers say they began to organize due to concerns about the spread of the virus and their frustration with racial injustice brought on by protests against George Floyd last spring. But the complaints go beyond the pandemic, reaching what some call onerous conditions.
“Amazon is a big plant, the size of a football field. They want us to go to the bathroom and get back to the machine in five minutes, ”said Linda Burns, who was injured at work at the Bessemer facility. “They say that we have good insurance that is quoted, not quoted. I’m still getting bills in the mail, its good insurance. “
Jennifer Bates, who also works at the facility, brought her case to Washington.
“Amazon is going to poor communities on the grounds that they want to help economic growth,” said Bates during a recent congressional hearing. “That should mean … a minimum wage and benefits that really correspond to the cost of living and guarantee[ing] workers work in safe and healthy conditions, because we are not robots designed just to live to work ”.
Amazon responded to the union movement by requiring workers to attend “union education meetings,” Bates told members of Congress, as well as by posting “anti-union” posters around the distribution center and sending messages to workers’ phones.
Amazon declined to comment for this article. But the e-commerce giant’s corporate Twitter account in recent days has directly addressed criticism from Democrats about working conditions at its facilities.
Sanders “has been a powerful politician in Vermont for 30 years and his minimum wage is still $ 11.75,” the company tweeted on Friday. “Amazon’s price is $ 15, plus excellent medical care from day one. Sanders would rather speak in Alabama than act in Vermont. “
The National Council for Labor Relations will begin counting votes on March 30, a process that may take a week or more. The vote lasted two months because it was done by postal vote as a security measure during the pandemic. In-person voting may have taken a few days.
Critics of the unions warn that such initiatives are often heavily influenced by other places and can leave local workers caught up in the fray.
“There are definitely combined, planned and well-funded campaigns by major labor unions to come from outside and organize new high-profile workplaces, and the Amazon campaign is a great example of that,” said Maxford Nelsen, director of political work at Freedom Foundation, a non-profit organization that criticizes unions. “And employees are trying to choose between the two sides.”
Nelsen rejected the idea that the union’s vote had a broader meaning for American labor policy.
“If employees vote against unionization. I think that means that most employees were not convinced by the union’s arguments, ”added Nelsen. “It means nothing more, nothing less than that.”
The Biden and unions-backed labor law reform framework, the Law to Protect the Right to Organize, would prohibit companies from requiring their workers to attend anti-union meetings, Sanders told reporters after the demonstration.
It would also require management to seek mediation and arbitration with the union if the two sides were unable to reach an initial collective agreement.
That bill passed the House earlier this month with just five Republican Party votes in favor, making it a long shot in the 50-50 Senate.
But defenders of unions and workers say the unusual public attention to the union movement and conditions at the call center captured the moment and are emblematic of how weak federal labor laws and growing economic inequality have increased the chances against workers.
“There has never been a greater argument for reform of labor legislation and the PRO Law than this election,” said Appelbaum, the union leader.
Alabama is one of 27 states that have enacted labor rights laws, which means that workers can choose not to be members of the union if they want to. The PRO Act would allow unions to override these laws and charge “fair participation fees” from non-members for collective bargaining costs.
The unions say they are already seeing the momentum of the effort in Bessemer, and that the initiative may also mobilize hesitant workers in states with stricter collective bargaining laws, as well as younger workers who may not be familiar with the unions after years of decline. in the number of members.
And your next target may not be far away. Amazon already have plans to expand in Bessemer and neighboring Birmingham later this year.
“I think this campaign can be seen as a thermometer for what is to come,” said Christian Sweeney, deputy director of organization at the AFL-CIO. “We are seeing more interest on the part of workers in the South in many different sectors, from manufacturing to higher education and health.”