Amazon warehouse workers in Bessemer, Alabama, will have another chance to unionize after the National Labor Relations Board authorized a revote after its review found the online shopping giant had improperly interfered in the first election.

Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union President Stuart Appelbaum said the board’s decision “confirms what we were saying all along — that Amazon’s intimidation and interference prevented workers from having a fair say in whether they wanted a union in their workplace.”

The Bessemer warehouse workers had faced an onslaught of anti-union messaging from Amazon, including text messages, literature and even anti-union posters in their bathrooms. Amazon also installed a mailbox at the facility, which union advocates said allowed the corporation to monitor employees mailing in their election ballots and created the false impression that Amazon itself was conducting the election. The final tally showed 1,798 votes against unionizing and 738 votes in favor of the union.

A vote among Amazon workers to unionize would be a significant victory for the labor movement. Amazon is the second-largest private employer in the United States with more than 950,000 employees.

NBC, Nov. 29
NPR, Nov. 29