Growing labor organization efforts at Amazon took a hit Monday when workers voted by a wide margin against unionizing at a second warehouse on Staten Island.
According to the National Labor Relations Board, workers cast 380 votes to be represented by unions and 618 against. About 1,600 warehouse workers were allowed to vote.
The result was a setback for the upstart Amazon Labor Union, which won a historic victory last month when workers at the larger, nearby Amazon warehouse voted to join a union. The loss also points to the potential limits of an increase in employee interest in unions at Amazon and beyond.
In the six months ending in March, union election applications rose nearly 60 percent from the same period a year earlier. That trend has included companies that often hire higher-skilled workers for non-professional jobs, such as Starbucks and the outdoor gear chain REI. But labor experts and organizers say it may be more difficult to unite workers who are less economically secure because they are more prone to pressure from an employer and more reluctant to risk getting involved in a union campaign.
While the union campaign that was successful at the larger Amazon warehouse last month involved a large proportion of full-time employees, a higher proportion of workers in the smaller facility are part-time and struggling to pay their bills.
This is a story in development. Come back for updates.
Coral Murphy Marcos reporting contributed.
