President Joe Biden has voiced his support for workers in Alabama who are pushing to form the first union in Amazon’s vast U.S. empire. In a video posted on Twitter on Sunday night, the president didn’t mention Amazon by name, but told workers “in Alabama and all across America” that he backs their right to join a union if they choose to do so. Warehouse workers in Bessemer, Alabama, have started voting on the option to join the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union—if approved, they would be the first group of Amazon workers in America to unionize. Biden said: “Let me be clear: It’s not up to me to decide whether anyone should join a union. But let me be even more clear: It’s not up to an employer to decide that either. The choice to join a union is up to the workers—full stop.” Last month, The Daily Beast reported on Amazon’s increasingly creepy attempts to persuade its workers to vote down the unionization effort.
Workers in Alabama – and all across America – are voting on whether to organize a union in their workplace. It’s a vitally important choice – one that should be made without intimidation or threats by employers.
