NLRB alleges Amazon's Jassy violated labor law in interviews
The National Labor Relations Board has filed a complaint accusing Amazon CEO Andy Jassy of violating labor law during media interviews this year where he said workers are better off without a union
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The National Labor Relations Board has filed a complaint accusing Amazon CEO Andy Jassy of violating labor law during media interviews this year where he said workers are better off without a union.
The complaint, dated Tuesday, focuses on two sit-down interviews Jassy conducted with CNBC and Bloomberg in April and June - some of the few times he has spoken publicly since the historic labor win at an Amazon warehouse on Staten Island, New York earlier this year.
In the April interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin of CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Jassy said he believes workers are better off having “direct connections with their managers” and stressed unions could get in the way of change because they’re “much more bureaucratic” and “much slower.”
He echoed similar statements on June 8 during a sit-down interview at the Bloomberg Tech Summit. An attorney with the Amazon Labor Union, the group that won the union election, filed an unfair labor practice charge with the NLRB calling out the comments.
In the complaint, the agency said Jassy’s statements were “interfering with, restraining, and coercing employees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed” under the National Labor Relations Act.
To resolve the complaint, Amazon can settle with the union or take the case before an administrative law judge in February. The agency is also requesting the company to mail or email workers a notice of their labor rights.
Amazon.com Inc. did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
The company has objected to the union’s labor win on Staten Island and is seeking to get a redo election. That process could take years to resolve and often takes the wind out of organizing campaigns, experts say.
Since the first labor victory, the union's momentum has been blunted by losses at two other Amazon warehouses in New York. On Tuesday, the group filed a litany of objections to the election held this month near Albany, New York, which resulted in a big labor defeat. It’s asking the NLRB for a new election.
Last week, the union pulled a petition it filed for a separate election at an Amazon warehouse in California, raising doubts as to whether it had enough support from workers to hold a vote.