Workers at a London Amazon facility narrowly lost their bid to unionize this week in a massive blow to U.K. organized labor.
The GMB lost its bid for union recognition at the London factory Tuesday by just 28 votes. The union needed a simple majority for recognition, but only 49.5% of the 2,600 workers who voted supported the move by organized labor.
Under British regulations, the union can’t launch another drive at the location for three years. If the union had won at the London facility, it would have been the first recognized Amazon labor union in the U.K.
Shortly after the results came in, the GMB accused Amazon of union busting and said the company would face a legal challenge.
According to the union, Amazon tried to influence the vote by hiring scores of employees just before the election. Additionally, the company allegedly pressured workers into canceling their support for the union and placed QR codes around the facility that, if scanned, would generate an email to the union asking for their membership to be nullified.
Amazon has denied these accusations and said it was pleased with the results.
“Across Amazon, we place an enormous value on engaging directly with our employees and having daily conversations with them,” the company said. “It’s an essential part of our work culture.”
The labor loss follows a string of defeats for prospective unions at Amazon facilities in the U.S. The retail giant has only one unionized location — in Staten Island, New York. Three subsequent union drives in that state and Alabama have failed, casting doubt on the future of organized labor at Amazon.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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