Amazon-owned Whole Foods is asking the National Labor Relations Board to set aside the results of a union election in which the first group of the company’s employees voted in favor of collective bargaining.
In a filing submitted to the agency this week, attorneys for Whole Foods Market argued the union involved with the election, held last week at a store in Philadelphia, interfered in the process by promising employees a 30% wage increase if they unionized and providing free transportation to them the day of the vote.
The company also accused The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union – which worked to unionize workers through a local chapter – of intimidating employees who supported Whole Foods. The company did not provide specific details on its allegations, which the union disputes.
Pro-union workers prevailed last week after 130 employees in the store – or about 57% of the ballots cast – voted in favor of organizing. The election results still need be certified by a regional director of the NLRB, which Whole Foods says can't lawfully be done since the agency currently does not have a third board member in Washington. Gynne A. Wilcox, one of the agency's board members, was fired last week by the Trump administration.
In a statement, UFCW Local 1776, the local union that pulled off the labor win, called the company’s allegations baseless. It also said the objections filed by Whole Foods was a legal maneuvering done to delay the bargaining process.
“We fully expected Whole Foods to try to stall this process," said Wendell Young IV, the president of the local union. "Amazon has a well-documented history of using baseless objections to undermine the rights of workers seeking representation, and this case is no different.”
In its objection to the election, the upscale grocery chain also accused the NLRB of tainting the process by restraining the company from communicating its views on unionization to employees through required meetings held during work hours.
In November, the agency’s board had issued a decision that found these meetings – commonly known as captive audience meetings – were unlawful because they forced employees to attend gatherings that they may otherwise choose to skip. Companies typically use these meetings to deter employees from unionizing.
The board said employers may still hold meetings about unions for their workers. But they must make attendance voluntary with no adverse consequences for employees who fail to show up.
The union election in Philadelphia marked the first successful entry of organized labor into Amazon’s grocery business, which includes Whole Foods, Amazon Fresh and the Amazon Go convenience stores. Amazon, which purchased Whole Foods in 2017 for $13.7 billion, has tried to fend off organizing efforts by delivery drivers and warehouse workers.
