In a sign that federal labor officials are closely scrutinizing management behavior during union campaigns, the National Labor Relations Board said Friday that it was credited with the report. Alleged that Amazon and Starbucks violated labor laws.
At Amazon, the labor board finds it valuable to accuse the company of asking workers participate in anti-union meetings at a large warehouse on Staten Island, home to the Amazon Federation of Labor won a great election victory last month. According to Seth Goldstein, an attorney representing the union, the decision was notified to the union Friday by an attorney for the labor council’s regional office in Brooklyn.
Such meetings, often referred to as “detainees” meetings, are legal under applicable labor council precedent. But last month, the board’s general counsel, Jennifer Abruzzo, issued a memorandum says this precedent conflicts with basic federal statute and she indicated that she would seek to challenge it.
In the same allegation, the Amazon Labor Union alleges the company threatened to withhold employee benefits if they voted to unionize and incorrectly indicated to employees that they could be fired. if the warehouse is affiliated and they don’t pay the union salary. fees. According to an email from the attorney at the regional office, Matt Jackson.
Mr. Jackson said the agency will soon file a complaint reflecting those allegations unless Amazon resolves the case. The suit will be brought before an administrative law judge, who can appeal their decision to the labor council in Washington.
Mr. Goldstein applauded Ms. Abruzzo and the regional office for taking “decisive steps to end the meetings of captives” and said the right to cooperate “will be protected by ending these practices.” Amazon’s inherent compulsion.”
Kelly Nantel, an Amazon spokeswoman, said in a statement that “these allegations are untrue and we look forward to showing that through this process.”
At Starbucks, where the union has won initial votes at more than 50 stores since December, the labor council filed a complaint Friday about a series of allegations the union filed in February, accused the company of illegal conduct. Those charges include firing employees in retaliation for supporting unions; threaten employees’ ability to receive new benefits if they choose to unionize; require workers to available for a minimum number of hours to continue working at a union store without negotiating a change, as a way of forcing at least one person to support the union; and effectively promises benefits to employees if they decide not to merge.
In addition to those allegations, the labor board also alleged that the company intimidated workers by closing stores in the Buffalo area and engaging in surveillance of workers while they were on the job. All of those actions would be illegal. Starbucks has Constantly being rejected that it violated workers’ labor rights.
In a statement, Starbucks Workers United, the branch of the union that represents workers there, said the finding “confirms the extent and deplorable behavior of Starbucks in Western New York for more than a year. via”. It added: “Starbucks will be held accountable for the union-destroying minefield they force workers to cross to fight for their right to organize.”
