Retail giant Amazon is challenging the constitutionality of the National Labor Relations Board in a new filing this week, joining a chorus of other businesses in legal trouble with the board.
In a Thursday filing with the board, Amazon’s lawyers argue that the five-member NLRB has too much power. The company says the agency’s ability to make rules, investigate potential wrongdoing and decide if a company violated the law “violates the separation of powers.”
The company also argues that the board’s structure does not provide adequate due process because companies are not provided a jury trial in NLRB legal proceedings and that the board can seek “a broader range of legal remedies beyond just equitable remedies.”
Typically, the NLRB’s general counsel issues complaints against companies, charging violation of U.S. labor law. The NLRB’s five-member board, whose members are appointed by the president, will then hear and rule on the cases. The general counsel also is appointed by the president.
The filing is part of a case before an administrative judge that charges Amazon with illegally retaliating against workers attempting to unionize at the company’s Staten Island, N.Y., warehouse. Amazon has faced more than 250 complaints from the NLRB and has denied any wrongdoing.
With the filing, Amazon is joining other businesses in calling the NLRB unconstitutional. SpaceX, Trader Joe’s and a few Starbucks baristas attempting to decertify their unions have challenged the board’s legitimacy through lawsuits or during board hearings.
SpaceX filed a federal lawsuit against the NLRB in January, with the company’s lawyers making claims similar to those made by Amazon. The NLRB accused the company of firing workers critical of owner Elon Musk.
Trader Joe’s echoed SpaceX’s lawyer’s comments a few weeks later during its own NLRB hearing over the company’s alleged union-busting tactics. The grocer also called the structure of the board unconstitutional.
Starbucks is one of the NLRB’s top violators, with more than 500 pending cases. The board has accused Starbucks of repeatedly violating federal labor law by firing pro-union workers, restricting union discussion and closing stores to stop organization. The company has denied any wrongdoing and has expressed an interest in restarting negotiations with its union, Starbucks Workers United.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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