A second union drive at an Amazon warehouse in New York City failed today, just a month after a Staten Island warehouse became the first Amazon shop to ever unionize.
The sorting center, known as LDJ5, voted 618-380 against organizing with Amazon Labor Union (ALU), after collecting ballots over the past week.
The union’s defeat contrasts with the successful campaign to unionize the JFK8 warehouse, a fulfillment center, which went toe-to-toe with the e-commerce giant during the COVID-19 pandemic and managed to approve a union. ALU ran the successful union drive at JFK8, working for two years to build support.
While workers at major companies such as Starbucks and Amazon are pushing for unions to improve wages and benefits, the movement has nonetheless faced setbacks despite the publicity and support from many.
In Bessemer, Alabama, another union vote was shot down around the same time the JFK8 warehouse pulled off its successful union drive. It was the second time the Bessemer facilities’ employees voted against a union. However, that vote is still being contested.
Amazon has poured a massive amount of resources into fighting unions, trying to stem the tide of collective worker power and a push for labor rights that swelled in the wake of the pandemic.