NLRB ordered Amazon to bargain with Staten Island workers; it’s now in federal court

In a legal battle spanning four and a half years, Amazon faces a decision on whether it must bargain with a union representing its Staten Island workers. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled in April that Amazon must negotiate with the union, which now aligns with the Teamsters as ALU-International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) Local 1.

This marks only the second time Amazon has faced a unionization attempt at one of its facilities and lost, following a failed attempt at a separate Staten Island facility a year earlier. The Teamsters filed a 115-page brief that revisits the union's history and disputes, while Amazon's brief focuses on narrow legal grounds. The case has been brought to the Fifth Circuit, where Amazon argues it has not bargained with the union because it seeks to overturn the NLRB's certification of the election and the April order for a negotiation.

The union claims Amazon's refusal to bargain is a "test of certification challenge." The union also seeks an "enhanced remedy," which would require Amazon to read aloud employees' rights under the National Labor Relations Act at a mandatory meeting. However, Amazon argues that the remedy has no precedent and the union has not made a sufficient case for it.

Another dispute between the Teamsters and Amazon continues, this time over whether Amazon is a joint employer with the delivery companies it contracts with.