The National Labor Relations Board today issued five complaints against mega retailer Amazon for a rule that union activists interpreted as a way to frustrate organizing activity.

One of the complaints deals with the online giant’s Bessemer fulfillment center, which was the scene of one unsuccessful union election in 2021 and an inconclusive one in 2022. Employees twice voted on being represented by the Retail, Wholesale & Department Store Union (RWDSU).

Specifically, the complaints deal with Amazon’s “off-duty access” rule banning employees from company facilities when not on shift.

The complaints seek the rule to be rescinded, along with mandatory training and union access. A complaint is the first step by the NLRB Regional Office after investigation.

“These complaints are completely without merit and we look forward to showing that through the legal process,” an Amazon spokesperson stated.

A hearing is set for Sept. 25 on the Bessemer complaint. Any decision by NLRB’s administrative law judges can also be appealed to the board and then to federal appeals court.

According to the NLRB, its Region 10 Atlanta office issued a consolidated complaint covering 10 charges related to Bessemer stemming from before and after a rerun union election there last year.

The complaint alleges that Amazon maintained a rule prohibiting access more than 30 minutes before or after a shift.

It also says the retailer removed and prohibited pro-union materials, held captive audience meetings, maintained interrogation and polling, surveillance, issued threats of loss of pay and benefits, and threats of closure.

The NLRB also issued complaints to Amazon facilities in New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The NLRB said it has more than 180 open or settled unfair labor practice cases filed against Amazon across 22 states.

And there’s still the matter of the second Bessemer union election. Though there were more votes against unionization in the second election on March 31, 2022, there were a greater number of “challenged ballots” than the margin voting against the union – 993 votes against, 875 for the union. The NLRB’s Regional Director will eventually decide whether or not to open/count 416 challenged ballots. Both Amazon and the RWDSU have objected to the election.

If either the union’s or the employer’s objections are sustained, the regional director could potentially order a third election. If the objections are dismissed, the Regional Director will need to process the challenged ballots to finalize the union election results. Several objections overlap with unfair labor practices charges that the region is also processing.

This post was corrected at 5:20 p.m. Tuesday May 23 to reflect the inconclusive results of the last union election.