Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jul 22, 2025

'Our system is broken': Amazon accused of 'illegal & egregious' behavior as early voting results deal blow to unionizing drive

'Our system is broken': Amazon accused of 'illegal & egregious' behavior as early voting results deal blow to unionizing drive

Amazon is in the lead amid a push to unionize one of its Alabama warehouses, with around 1,100 workers voting ‘No’ on the proposal so far, more than double those backing it, as the union claims the company used “illegal” tactics.

Some 463 ‘Yes’ votes were recorded after ballot-counting ended on Thursday evening, far outpaced by the 1,100 in opposition, according to local media. While the count is set to resume on Friday morning, the organization at the center of the battle, the Retail, Wholesale & Department Store Union (RWDSU), has already voiced pessimism in the outcome, with its president all but acknowledging defeat while accusing the e-retail giant of misconduct.

“Our system is broken, Amazon took full advantage of that, and we will be calling on the labor board to hold Amazon accountable for its illegal and egregious behavior during the campaign. But make no mistake about it; this still represents an important moment for working people and their voices will be heard,” RWDSU head Stuart Appelbaum said in a statement.

The union has repeatedly condemned Amazon’s conduct during the voting process. It alleged that by placing a mailbox on-site at the Bessemer warehouse, the company gave the impression it would review the ballots itself and may have swayed workers’ votes. Amazon has denied pressuring the US Postal Service (USPS) to put the box there, and maintains it was meant to provide a “convenient, safe, and private [way] for our employees to vote on their way to and from work if they choose to.”

However, emails obtained by the Washington Post on Thursday indicate that Amazon did press the postal service to place a mailbox at the facility after all, with a USPS manager telling a colleague in January that the company wanted “to move quickly on this.” Another missive sent by the same manager six days later also notes that an unnamed employee at “Amazon HQ” wanted to be “kept in the loop” on the progress of the mailbox.

Appelbaum castigated the company over the revelation, saying that “Amazon felt it was above the law and worked with the postal service anyway” to install the mailbox, even after the National Labor Relations Board shot down a previous request to place a dropbox on location.

"They did this because it provided a clear ability to intimidate workers."


Overseen by the National Labor Relations Board, the vote to unionize Amazon’s Bessemer, Alabama fulfillment center is the first major drive of its kind since 2014, when workers overwhelmingly voted against unionizing a company warehouse in Delaware. Thursday marked the first day of ballot-counting in the current initiative, following mail-in voting that began in February.

Of nearly 6,000 employees at the Bessemer facility, only about 55% of the workers cast ballots, all by mail. A simple majority is needed to carry the day.

As the union fight drags on into a second day of vote-counting, Amazon has also come under fire for its efforts to block a shareholder proposal to audit the company’s handling of Covid-19 and measures it took to keep workers safe. Employees have alleged unsafe working conditions and lax policies amid the pandemic, with one worker fired after staging a protest over the issue last April. Nonetheless, the Securities and Exchange Commission has reportedly sided with Amazon on barring the safety audit, though a separate review of its civil rights and ‘racial equity’ practices was recently given the green light.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
×