Workers organizing for a union at Amazon’s Bessemer fulfillment center received a standing ovation this morning before the AFL-CIO Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.
In a five-minute segment before the convention, workers Isaiah Thomas, Clint Shiflett, Kenneth Carter and organizer Adam Obernauer appeared, talking about efforts to organize for the Retail, Wholesale & Department Store Union (RWDSU).
Obernauer told the crowd that the RWDSU and affiliated labor unions had more than 100 organizers on the ground, representing more than 20 unions, prior to the second union vote in March at the center.
Twice over the last year, workers at the fulfillment center have voted on whether they will be represented by the union, with Amazon winning both counts, most recently in March. In April, the RWDSU filed objections to the latest union vote, saying the National Labor Relations Board should set aside the results and arguing that Amazon interfered with the ability to conduct a “free and fair election.” The second election occurred after the NLRB set aside the results of the first one in 2021.
Here is full coverage of the Alabama Amazon unionization effort
March’s union election had 993 votes against union representation, while 875 voted for the union. There were 416 contested ballots. Those ballots were objected to by both the union and Amazon.
Isaiah Thomas, an Amazon Bessemer worker and organizing committee member who filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board, said the Amazon union campaign is important for the future of labor in an atmosphere where labor decisions are being made through technology. Thomas’ complaint was later withdrawn.
Thomas called Amazon’s working conditions “absolutely dystopian.”
“This fight isn’t just about Amazon,” Thomas said. “Amazon is driving down the work standards and is setting up technology that is going to affect literally every industry, and Amazon is as anti-union as they come.”
Obernauer said the Bessemer union campaign also gave hope to other organizing efforts.
“For many, it was the first time the public saw the intensity of how employers union bust, and how they break labor laws during organizing campaigns, which help politicize many young workers, and workers all around the country,” Obernauer said. “Equally notable, the importance of solidarity that the labor movement brought to the table for the campaign cannot be overstated.”
This post was updated at 9:58 a.m. CST June 14 to update information.
