Region 13-Chicago and Region 29-Brooklyn Win Board Decision Ruling Amazon Violated No-Access Rule Settlement Agreement

On September 10, 2024, the National Labor Relations Board issued a decision finding that Amazon Services, LLC did not comply with an approved settlement agreement relating to the rights of Amazon employees to engage in protected activity on Amazon property while off-duty. In the settlement, Amazon specifically agreed to rescind its unlawful work rule which prohibited off-duty employees from being on Amazon’s property, including outside its facilities in nonwork areas, more than 15 minutes before or after their shifts. In the Board’s September 10th decision, it found that Amazon replaced its rule with a more restrictive one which prohibited off-duty workers from being inside the building or in working areas outside the building.

Because the original settlement included language that provided for issuance of a complaint and default judgment in the event of noncompliance with terms of the settlement agreement, no hearing in front of an administrative law judge was required and the case was transferred to the Board for ruling. The Board ordered Amazon to cease and desist from maintaining policies that unlawfully prohibit off-duty employee access to nonwork areas, and post and electronically distribute a notice to its employees at its facilities nationwide.

“I applaud the great work of Region 13 staff investigating and litigating this case,” said NLRB Region 13 Director Angie Cowan Hamada. “Workers have a right to engage in protected activities at their workplace free from retaliation. These hard-fought remedies on a national level are a critical part of effectuating the National Labor Relations Act.”

“Workers have the right to advocate collectively at their workplace – and it is unlawful for an employer to prohibit or retaliate against them for doing so,” said NLRB Region 29 Director Teresa Poor. “I am proud of the staff in Region 29 for diligently pursuing this significant case, which will impact workers around the country.”

Established in 1935, the National Labor Relations Board is an independent federal agency that protects employees, employers, and unions from unfair labor practices and protects the right of private sector employees to join together, with or without a union, to improve wages, benefits and working conditions. The NLRB conducts hundreds of workplace elections and investigates thousands of unfair labor practice charges each year. Region 29 serves areas in New York from its Regional Office in Brooklyn.