Amazon has been hit with a complaint to the US Labor Board over the “pooling” of drivers

Amazon.com has been accused by a US labor council of illegally refusing to bargain with a union representing drivers employed by a contractor, the agency said Wednesday.

The National Labor Relations Board’s complaint alleges that Amazon is the so-called “joint employer” of drivers employed by the contractor, Battle Tested Strategies (BTS), and used a series of illegal tactics to discourage union activity at a Palmdale facility . , California.

BTS drivers voted to join the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union last year, becoming the first Amazon delivery contractors to unionize.

The NLRB in the complaint, which was issued Monday, said Amazon violated the law by terminating the contract with BTS after the drivers unionized without first negotiating with the Teamsters.

The board in August said it found merit in the union’s claims that Amazon exercises control over BTS drivers and should be considered their employer under federal labor law. The NLRB at the time said it would issue a complaint if Amazon did not settle the case.

Last month, the board said it planned to issue a second complaint involving another group of Amazon drivers.

Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company has said in the past that it does not have enough control over the drivers’ working conditions to be considered their joint employer.

Joint employment has been one of the most controversial labor issues in the US over the past decade, and the NLRB’s standard for determining when companies qualify as joint employers has changed many times since the Obama administration. Business groups favor a test that requires direct and immediate control over workers, while unions and Democrats support a standard that covers indirect forms of control.

The case will be heard by an administrative judge in Los Angeles, who is scheduled to hold an initial hearing next March. The judge’s decision can be reviewed by the five-member NLRB, whose rulings can be appealed in federal court.

A ruling that Amazon is a joint employer under federal labor law could apply to cases involving other Amazon contractors and force the company to negotiate with drivers’ unions.

Meanwhile, the board faces claims from a growing number of companies, including Amazon, that its structure and internal enforcement procedures violate the US Constitution.

Amazon has filed a lawsuit against the board to prevent it from deciding whether the company must negotiate with a union representing workers at a New York warehouse. On Monday, a federal appeals court temporarily blocked the NLRB from ruling while it reviews Amazon’s claims.

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