Anita Alem is a student at Harvard Law School.
On Wednesday, the Amazon Labor Union announced that the Staten Island Amazon warehouse JFK8 will be holding its first union election from March 25 to March 30. As we reported yesterday, the vote will coincide with the vote counting process for the union election occurring in Bessemer, Alabama. The date and JFK8 location is significant, as it marks exactly two years since Christian Smalls organized a warehouse walkout to protest unsafe conditions as a result of COVID-19. Smalls, who was later fired in what he alleges was a retaliatory action for his whistleblowing, has since organized Amazon workers as the president of the Amazon Labor Union. Smalls tweeted to note the significance of the voting date, two years after the JFK8 walkout, and also shared what appears to be a text message from Amazon to JFK8 employees encouraging them to vote no in the election.
Internationally, Reuters reported that unionized workers of Samsung Electronics in South Korea appear to be threatening an unprecedented strike. Workers rallied at Samsung’s Seoul headquarters demanding benefits such as increased paid leave and health benefits. A union official noted the concerns over public outrage if workers were to strike, stating “We don’t want a strike at a chip line. If I said we want to stop a chip line that would make us into a public enemy.” The largest union has more than 4,500 workers and constitutes about 4% of Korea’s worker population.
Daily News & Commentary
Start your day with our roundup of the latest labor developments. See all
July 9
In Today’s News and Commentary, the Supreme Court green-lights mass firings of federal workers, the Agricultural Secretary suggests Medicaid recipients can replace deported farm workers, and DHS ends Temporary Protected Status for Hondurans and Nicaraguans. In an 8-1 emergency docket decision released yesterday afternoon, the Supreme Court lifted an injunction by U.S. District Judge Susan […]
July 8
In today’s news and commentary, Apple wins at the Fifth Circuit against the NLRB, Florida enacts a noncompete-friendly law, and complications with the No Tax on Tips in the Big Beautiful Bill. Apple won an appeal overturning a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decision that the company violated labor law by coercively questioning an employee […]
July 7
LA economy deals with fallout from ICE raids; a new appeal challenges the NCAA antitrust settlement; and the EPA places dissenting employees on leave.
July 6
Municipal workers in Philadelphia continue to strike; Zohran Mamdani collects union endorsements; UFCW grocery workers in California and Colorado reach tentative agreements.
July 4
The DOL scraps a Biden-era proposed rule to end subminimum wages for disabled workers; millions will lose access to Medicaid and SNAP due to new proof of work requirements; and states step up in the noncompete policy space.
July 3
California compromises with unions on housing; 11th Circuit rules against transgender teacher; Harvard removes hundreds from grad student union.