Judge rules Amazon CEO violated US law with anti-union comments
Andy Jassy stated that employees in a union would “find it harder to get things done quickly and would be better off” without one
A federal administrative law judge has ruled that Amazon CEO Andy Jassy violated labor law by making anti-union comments during media interviews two years ago.
In 2022, Jassy stated that unions make workplaces “much slower” and “more bureaucratic.”
The ruling, issued on Wednesday, stems from a complaint filed in 2022 by the National Labor Relations Board, accusing Jassy of crossing the line during interviews where he claimed workers were better off without a union.
In his decision, National Labor Relations Board judge Brian D. Gee highlighted statements Jassy made on CNBC’s Squawk Box and at summits organized by Bloomberg News and the New York Times.
Judge Gee stated that Jassy’s predictions about unionization altering the employee-employer relationship were lawful. However, his other comments about employees being less empowered under a union and finding it harder to get things done quickly, as well as being better off without a union, violated federal labor law.
Jassy explained that in a unionized workplace, “If you see something on the line that you think could be better for your team or you or your customers, you can’t just go to your manager and say, ‘Let’s change it.'”
In a prepared statement, Amazon spokesperson Mary Kate Paradis said the company strongly disagrees that “any part of these comments” were inappropriate and plans to appeal the ruling within the administrative law system.
Paradis expressed disappointment in the state of free speech rights today and expressed hope for continued reasonable discussions where all perspectives are heard. Jassy made his remarks amidst growing unionization efforts at Amazon, following a landmark victory by the Amazon Labor Union in a union representation vote at a New York City warehouse. The company has appealed the union’s win and declined to negotiate. Gee’s ruling advised Amazon to refrain from “threatening its employees” with similar comments in the future and to post a notice in its facilities nationwide indicating compliance with the judge’s decision.
