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action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home4/scienrds/scienceandnerds/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6114Source: https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/2022\/4\/7\/23014893\/nlrb-counsel-captive-audience-meetings-union-labor-amazon<\/a> The National Labor Relations Board\u2019s general counsel plans to ask the board to rule that mandatory meetings about organizing are a violation of the National Labor Relations Act, a significant potential victory for labor groups. Sometimes called \u201ccaptive audience\u201d meetings, mandatory meetings are often used by company management to present anti-union rhetoric at meetings that employees are required to attend while at work. <\/p>\n Employees trying to unionize Amazon warehouses in Bessemer<\/a>, Alabama, and New York City have previously filed complaints with the NLRB claiming that the company held such meetings<\/a> to try to convince workers to vote against the union efforts. The NLRB has historically allowed such meetings, but a new memo from NLRB general counsel Jennifer Abruzzo is pushing the agency to break from that policy.<\/p>\n In the memo to the agency\u2019s field offices<\/a> (pdf), Abruzzo wrote that forcing workers to attend meetings under the threat of disciplinary action, is \u201cinconsistent\u201d with existing labor law.<\/p>\n \u201cThis license to coerce is an anomaly in labor law, inconsistent with the Act\u2019s protection of employees\u2019 free choice. It is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of employers\u2019 speech rights,\u201d she wrote in the memo. \u201cI believe that the NLRB case precedent, which has tolerated such meetings, is at odds with fundamental labor-law principles, our statutory language, and our Congressional mandate. Because of this, I plan to urge the Board to reconsider such precedent and find mandatory meetings of this sort unlawful.\u201d<\/p>\n Under the proposed rule, the NLRB would require employers to tell their workers that attendance is voluntary for any meetings to discuss unionization. This would protect employers\u2019 free speech rights, while not infringing on employees\u2019 right to decide whether to listen, Abruzzo argues.<\/p>\n Amazon has been accused<\/a> of staging such meetings as \u201ctraining\u201d sessions or \u201csmall group meetings,\u201d where managers speak about what the notoriously anti-union e-commerce company considers the downsides of joining a union. The company has claimed the meetings, which are mandatory, are meant to help educate workers, despite numerous reports that the information provided<\/a> is questionable at best. <\/p>\n A recording of a recent meeting at the JFK8 warehouse<\/a> includes a manager named \u201cEric,\u201d who told the meeting that a union could include clauses in a contract that would \u201crequire Amazon to fire you if you don\u2019t want to join the union\u201d and that contract negotiators may have different priorities from union members. Workers can be heard pushing back against Eric\u2019s claims on the audio. <\/p>\n Amazon didn\u2019t immediately reply to a request for comment from The Verge.<\/em><\/p>\n The potential shift in NLRB policy comes after a string of recent wins for labor organizers, which have been encouraged by the Biden administration\u2019s NLRB. Last week, workers at Amazon\u2019s JFK8 warehouse in Staten Island voted to join the fledgling Amazon Labor Union<\/a>, the first successful union drive in the company\u2019s history. Amazon\u2019s Bessemer warehouse is currently awaiting the official results<\/a> of its second union election.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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