Amazon Workers Reject Union In 2nd Staten Island Warehouse

NEW YORK CITY — A union drive at a Staten Island Amazon warehouse fell short Monday, just weeks after a historic win at a nearby facility.

The bid fell short by a 618- to 380-vote margin, NPR and other outlets reported. Turnout was about 61 percent, with about 1,600 workers who were eligible to vote, according to a voter list provided by Amazon.

Leaders with the Amazon Labor Union — the group that successfully unionized another Amazon warehouse in Staten Island in April — accepted the result in a tweet.

“The election has concluded without the union being recognized at LDJ5—sortation center on Center Island,” the tweet stated. “The organizing will continue at this facility and beyond. The fight has just begun.”

The first, successful union drive in Staten Island was seen as a watershed moment for a resurgent labor movement.

Chris Smalls, a fired Amazon employee, had worked with other Amazon Labor Union organizers to pull off a surprise win and make the facility the first union shop in the online retail giant’s history.

But the loss at the second Staten Island facility likely stung organizers, who hoped their previous win would give them momentum and not be seen as a fluke.

Organizers said their first other union drive cost them support at the second facility as they shifted attention in the run up to the vote in April. The second facility had far fewer organizers who worked in the building.

Workers said Amazon used aggressive anti-union tactics — a mix of mandatory meetings to persuade workers against organizing, flyers distributed against the effort and a website urging workers to "vote NO."

"Right now, the ALU is trying to come between our relationship with you," a post on the website stated. "They think they can do a better job advocating for you than you are doing for yourself."

Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel told the Associated Press in a statement that employees had a choice whether to join a union, but the company’s leaders don’t think unions are the best answer.

"Our focus remains on working directly with our team to continue making Amazon a great place to work,” Nantel’s statement reads.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.