On Wednesday night, workers at Amazon in Delaware rejected the company’s first labor union. The union would have been formed under the umbrella of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which has been controversially ensnared in brutal negotiations with Boeing – negotiations that ended in the machinists’ union accepting Boeing’s proposal to keep the 777X line in the Puget Sound region in return for machinists moving away from the pension system and toward 401(k)s. The would-be Amazon union was rejected by a vote of 21 to 6.
The IAMAW blamed the losing vote on Amazon pressure not to unionize, with spokesman stating, “That number is a clear reflection that the tactics Amazon and their law firm employed were very effective. Under the intense pressures these workers faced on the shop floor, it was an uphill battle all the way.”
This was the first vote on an Amazon union at a fulfillment center, and followed an application to form a union with the National Labor Relations Board.
Amazon reacted with satisfaction. Mary Osako, an Amazon spokesperson, said, “With today’s vote against third-party representation, our employees have made it clear that they prefer a direct connection with Amazon. This direct connection is the most effective way to understand and respond to the wants and needs of our employees. Amazon’s culture and business model are based on rapid innovation, flexibility, and open lines of direct communication between managers and associates.”
Private sector union representation has dropped precipitously in the United States, and now stands at just 6.6 percent.
Ben Shapiro is Editor-At-Large of Breitbart News and author of the New York Times bestseller “Bullies: How the Left’s Culture of Fear and Intimidation Silences America” (Threshold Editions, January 8, 2013). He is also Editor-in-Chief of TruthRevolt.org. Follow Ben Shapiro on Twitter @benshapiro.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.