Workers at the Amazon warehouse in South Albany, New York will begin an election to unionize in October, the United Auto Workers (UAW) announced Wednesday. The results of this election could have ripple effects throughout the e-commerce sector, particularly as it relates to distribution centers in other states, including New Jersey and Indiana. Here’s what you need to know about the upcoming election at the warehouse in South Albany, including some of the companies who may be watching it carefully.
One of Amazon’s facilities in upstate New York will have a union election the following month, the company told CNBC.
Voting will take place between October 12 and October 17 at the warehouse, which is in the town of Schodack, southeast of Albany, New York.
ALB1 employees at the site submitted a proposal for a union vote last month. The Amazon Labor Union, a grassroots organisation of current and former workers that successfully unionised one of Amazon’s Staten Island warehouses, known as JFK8, is attempting to represent these workers.
In late August, the National Labor Relations Board concluded that workers at the Albany warehouse had satisfied the conditions for holding a union election. After gathering petition signatures from at least 30% of workers, unions are permitted to hold elections.
The firm is still unsure that there are enough “valid signatures” to proceed with an election, according to Amazon spokesperson Paul Flaningan, but the company respects employees’ rights “to have their thoughts heard, and we hope and anticipate this procedure provides for that.”
Both union activist Heather Goodall and NLRB spokeswoman Kayla Blado confirmed that the workplace will have an election the following month.
According to Blado, the election would take place under a tent outside the building. On October 18, the NLRB will start tallying the ballots.
The ALU’s ability to repeat its triumph on Staten Island will be put to the test in the Albany election. When employees at a nearby factory decided against establishing a union in May, the ALU experienced an early defeat.
The ALU and Amazon have been engaged in court battles recently on the JFK8 ballot results. Amazon claims that the union and the NLRB committed malpractice that corrupted the election process and that the results should be annulled.
An NLRB official recommended earlier this month that Amazon’s objections be rejected and the outcomes sustained. Amazon has until Friday to contest the recommendations of the official.
