(ThyBlackMan.com) “He’s not smart, or articulate, and to the extent the press wants to focus on us versus him, we will be in a much stronger PR position than simply explaining for the umpteenth time how we’re trying to protect workers.”
David Zapolsky, general counsel of Amazon, wrote those words in an email two years ago. Zapolsky was referring to Christian “Chris” Smalls, who at the time was one of the two leaders who were striving to form a labor union at Amazon’s facility — known as JFK8 — in Staten Island, New York. The other leader was Derrick Palmer.
Zapolsky’s dismissive message came as Amazon was indeed fighting a public relations battle regarding unionization. Once the email became public, he offered this half-hearted mea culpa: “I was frustrated and upset that an Amazon employee would endanger the health and safety of other Amazonians by repeatedly returning to the premises after (having been exposed to COVID-19). I let my emotions draft my words and get the better of me.” Ya think?
At a worth of $1.3 trillion, Amazon is America’s richest company. It spends millions of dollars each year attempting to discourage workers from forming unions. (By contrast, Smalls’ and Palmer’s budget was just north of $100,000.) Further, workers are frequently forced to listen to managers rail against unions. Amazon’s actual strategy is to create conditions that encourage lower-wage workers to quit. (The company has a 150% turnover rate among warehouse employees.) Its money, message and methods have always been successful at preventing unionization.
Until two weeks ago.
On April 1, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) recognized the first unionized workers at Amazon after more than 2,600 workers at the JFK8 facility voted to create the Amazon Labor union (ALU).
Afterward, Smith, who Amazon fired two years ago, shared his thoughts: “They took everything away from me. So, you take everything away from somebody (who has) nothing to lose — in the middle of a pandemic — you’ve just created a monster. … So, at least let me do somethin’ that’s gonna help people out.”
To be sure, Amazon has been extremely helpful in getting necessary goods to people across the entire country during the pandemic — and has been rewarded extremely well for doing so. The fact is that I don’t want Amazon to fail; I simply want its union(s) to succeed.
Smith and Palmer, who are both young Black men, lack formal training as union organizers. Yet, they achieved the unthinkable, creating the ALU. National labor unions, which had repeatedly failed to organize workers in other Amazon facilities, scoffed at these young men’s inexperience, condescendingly telling them that they didn’t know what they were doing. It turns out that their dearth of know-how was one of their strongest attributes. They succeeded by relentlessly focusing on workers’ needs and wants. Smith put it succinctly: “Our campaign was built off love and care for each other. That’s it.” I wish that I could have seen the look on the faces of union “experts” after the news broke.
Historically, labor unions have been a major reason for the growth of the middle class in this country. They have also forced safety standards to be implemented in dangerous workplaces. Importantly, even employees who aren’t unionized have long benefitted from union gains.
Of course, not all labor union history is positive. For example, several unions have a history of racist membership policies. Others have felt compelled to protect workers who are a danger to themselves or others — or who simply don’t want to work. Yet, on balance, labor unions have been instrumental in raising wages and safety standards for Americans, especially those who don’t have a college degree.
In the end, Smalls, Palmer and the workers at the JFK8 facility achieved a great victory — one that nobody thought they would garner. Though the very difficult work of negotiating a contract lies ahead, I’m hopeful that they will savor the moment. Their victory will have major implications for the 1.6 million or so Amazon employees — Smalls and Palmer have been contacted by representatives from approximately 50 other Amazon facilities — and likely for the labor movement overall.
For its part, Amazon is appealing the union vote to the NLRB. Most labor experts believe that it is likely to fail. Thus, if indeed Smalls is not “smart or articulate,” what does his triumph say about America’s richest and most powerful company?
Written by Larry Smith
