#bamazon

Crossover Crack Pairing

Bolin and The Amazon

Bamazon/Assquakes

The Amazon:

X

Bolin:

Crossover AU

What does Asami think of Bolin's new... partner in Amazon? Good or bad?

Asami: I see you are a man of culture, Bolin. A beautiful muscular woman who can crush your body with her mighty physique.

Jane McAlevey, longtime organizer for the AFL-CIO and SEIU, breaks down what she sees as the failures of the union organizing campaign in Bessemer. Some highlights on why she believes the campaign failed:

The Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union (RWDSU) had inaccurate lists of workers from the beginning of the campaign. Their initial filing with the NLRB assumed there were 1500 workers at the Bessemer warehouse. Amazon responded that there were in fact 5800 workers, forcing RWDSU to scramble to get the necessary 30% of workers to sign that they were interested in joining a union. This is necessary to begin the election process with the NLRB.

Organizers handled issues surrounding employees' anxiety about paying union dues poorly. When Amazon launched a very predictable campaign about the futility of handing a percentage of your hard-earned money over to a union, the president of the RWDSU's response was that because of Alabama's right to work law, employees weren't actually required to pay dues. This is very obviously the worst possible union response to this concern. Organizers should be prepared from the onset of a campaign to aggressively address the topic of dues and what they provide for workers in the long run, as it's a favorite talking point of union busters.

The language of activists and organizers during the campaign was heavily pro-union and less pro-worker, speaking about the union as though it was something "other" or "better" than the workers themselves. When a company's aggressive arguments against unionization include characterizing the union as an organization that takes your money and then can act without your approval or remove some of your personal agency, it's important to emphasize that the union is the workers.

Organizers focused on interacting with workers at entrances and exits of the workplace, rather than making house calls. This is an egregious mistake, particularly as these are places where workers are still under employer surveillance. Especially in such a tense, public election against which the company is waging a very aggressive campaign, employees can feel understandably anxious about being seen interacting with organizers. Organizers claimed they were avoiding house calls due to covid-19, but were more than capable of taking precautions (face masks, hand sanitizer, social distancing, outdoor visits). Studies have shown that house calls are one of the most important tactics for organizing campaigns.

No majority public structure tests were done. A majority public structure test is when a majority of workers who are eligible to vote in an upcoming union election sign a petition or take photos and produce a poster, flyer, or website that displays their signature or faces, with a message stating their intent to vote yes. It's important for pro-union workers to publicly make a stand, even in hostile working atmospheres, as it encourages more hesitant workers to engage. Structure tests should be repeated until a majority of workers are willing to sign and should be continued throughout the campaign. This is a staple tactic of large-scale unionization efforts. The majority of public materials instead featured union staff and outside supporters, creating an environment where workers could easily feel disenfranchised from the campaign.

There was very little support from local organizations, churches, religious groups, etc in Bessemer. Community support, especially from faith leaders, is extremely important in organizing campaigns. Workers from the RWDSU didn't even reach out to local community groups until remarkably late in the game, when they should have done so before the campaign was even publicly announced.

“To file the NLRB notice, the union needed to have cards authorizing the RWDSU to represent workers in collective bargaining signed by at least 30 percent of the proposed negotiating unit, said Rebecca Givan, a labor studies professor at Rutgers University. But she noted that very few unions would file for a union vote without “a very strong majority” of cards signed, or support at the Alabama warehouse from well over 750 workers.

And it’s particularly notable that the effort is in Alabama, a state that is seen as hostile to organized labor, Givan said.

“That this is happening in a deeply anti-union state is really bold,” Givan said.

Amazon can contest the size and composition of the proposed bargaining unit. And it can raise questions over the authorization cards. Givan anticipates Amazon will use all the tools at its disposal to beat back the union drive.”

#UnionizeAmazon

#bamazon

The BAmazon Union vote ends on March 29th! As part of our last big community push moving into the union decision, organizers from Party for Socialism and Liberation Birmingham, Atlanta, and Gulf Coast spent Saturday canvassing to build support for the union and show them that the community is on their side.

In case you missed it, Nick Kroll and John Mulaney’s appearance as Gil Faizon and George St. Geegland on the Bachelor after show was the gift I’ve earned for blogging The Bachelor all these years. “White devils,” LOL.   The Grammys will be live for everyone this year. Hooray?   A star of something called Bamazon on the History Channel has been charged with murder. Bamazon?   Cancellations: What…

This is a must-read for anyone in the industry.  No-one who has been in the business for any length of time is going to be surprised by the findings, but the reporting is excellent.  Yet again, cut corners, sloppy safety standards and shady business dealings in the name of entertainment led to death and injury on set.  I still find it shocking that this accident happened on a scripted, union show -- one with AD's, production managers, and location managers on staff.  On reality shows we have none of the above and we often play even more fast and loose with safety on set.  Let's hope this accident leads to big change in the business, because we desperately need it.