Amazon investors tell company not to interfere with Alabama warehouse union vote: report
The group of investors owns more than $2B in shares
Amazon investors are pleading for the company to stop interfering with the historic union election at an Alabama facility, according to a new report.
The group of more than 70 investors -- who are calling for Amazon to remain neutral on whether the Bessemer facility should form a union -- collectively owns more than $20 billion worth of shares in the company, the Financial Times reported.
Representatives for Amazon did not respond to FOX Business' request for comment.
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| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMZN | AMAZON.COM INC. | 188.99 | +1.46 | +0.78% |
On Monday, workers at the facility began receiving mail-in ballots and will have until March 29 to submit their votes, according to a decision posted last month by the National Labor Relations Board.
Both full- and part-time workers at the center are seeking to be represented by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. Depending on the outcome, it could become the first Amazon union in the nation.
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In a letter to the company, investors, including BMO Global Asset Management and comptrollers for the state of New York and New York City, reportedly cited Amazon's global human rights principles, which work to ensure its workers and communities "are treated with fundamental dignity and respect."
The principles specifically state that employees should be free to join or form a labor union "without fear of reprisal, intimidation, or harassment."
One of the investors, New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer, told the FT that the warehouse workers have his full support in their fight for "a safe, fair workplace."
Amazon boxes are seen stacked for delivery in Manhattan, New York on Jan. 29, 2016, and founder Jeff Bezos (Reuters/Mike Segar/File Photo and Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
"As these workers seek to organize with [the union] for health, safety, and protection, Amazon's investors are watching," Stringer said.
In January, the e-commerce juggernaut filed a motion with the U.S. labor board to delay the vote and give the board more time to reconsider its earlier decision to hold the election by mail rather than in person.
AMAZON PUSHES FOR IN-PERSON UNIONIZING VOTE FOR 'VALID, FAIR AND SUCCESSFUL ELECTION'
Amazon had argued that in-person voting is the best way to "approach to a valid, fair and successful election" and that it would make "it easy for associates to verify and cast their vote."
Still, the NLRB had deemed that mail-in ballots were the "safest and most appropriate method of conducting an election in view of the extraordinary circumstances presented by the COVID-19 pandemic," officials wrote in a notice.
Amazon spokesperson Owen Torres previously told FOX Business that the company's objective was to get as many employees as possible to vote and that even the labor board "recognizes that the employee participation rate for its own elections conducted with mail ballots is 20-30% lower than the participation rate for in-person voting."
"We’re disappointed by the decision by the NLRB not to provide the most fair and effective format to achieve maximum employee participation," Torres said, adding that the company will "continue to insist on measures for a fair election that allows for a majority of our employee voices to be heard."
LABOR BOARD DENIES AMAZON'S REQUEST TO DELAY ALABAMA UNIONIZING VOTE
Amazon has said that since the warehouse opened in March it has created thousands of full-time jobs in Bessemer, with an average pay of $15.30 per hour, including full health care, vision and dental insurance.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
