First Unionized eBay Workers at TCGplayer File Unfair Labor Practice Charges and Hold Action Against the Company’s Continuous Illegal Anti-Union Behavior

PRESS RELEASE

July 31, 2023

Syracuse, N.Y. — Today at 12 p.m. ET, members of the first union at eBay, the TCGunion-CWA, held a press conference with local community members, labor leaders, and supporters at the Marriott Syracuse Downtown. Workers and supporters decried eBay’s continued efforts to sabotage organized workers and ignore their basic right to organize. On Friday, March 10, 2023, the 272 workers of the TCGunion-CWA overwhelmingly won their union election. In response to this victory, eBay and its subsidiary TCGplayer have engaged in a series of legal and illegal delay tactics to avoid meeting workers at the bargaining table. Today, workers also filed two Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) Charges against eBay and TCGplayer for their continued refusal to negotiate a fair union contract. CWA has previously filed multiple ULP charges on behalf of workers, demonstrating a clear trend of illegal behavior by eBay and TCGplayer.

"Today’s action, and the multiple Unfair Labor Practice Charges we have filed, are crucial because five months ago, TCGunion-CWA won our union election with a majority vote. In response, eBay has refused to bargain with us or listen to us. My colleagues and I haven’t had a cost-of-living raise in 3 years. We are losing sick time and face constant changes at work that impact our ability to be successful. We are tired of being blamed for management’s poor decision-making. We want eBay to stop skirting the law and sit down with us at the bargaining table. A strong union contract is the only way we’ll be able to hold management accountable to their own supposed values and ensure my colleagues and I earn the fair wages and benefits we deserve,”said Briana Thomas, eBay worker and TCGunion-CWA member.

At the press conference, members of the TCGunion-CWA were joined by New York State Senator John Mannion (NY-50); Chris Ryan, President of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 1123; Mark Spadafore, President of the Greater Syracuse Labor Council; and Anne-Marie Taliercio, President of the Central NY Labor Federation. Workers delivered a petition signed by a supermajority of workers and a community petition signed by approximately 6,500 community supporters from around the world, uplifting their demand for eBay and TCGplayer to end delay tactics and bargain in good faith.

“eBay and TCGplayer management fail to see us as experts, disregards our feedback, and worsens problems, leaving us to clean up the mess. We have a pool of talented, hardworking, and passionate individuals whose voices go unheard. We are critical to eBay’s success, the company is not invested in ensuring we can work free from injury or earn enough to pay for groceries. It's time for management to back up their claims of respect for workers by coming to the bargaining table with real commitments, not just empty promises." said Kethry Warren, eBay worker and member of the TCGunion-CWA.

The workers of TCGunion-CWA are physically responsible for ensuring that every shipment in and out of TCGplayer is completed accurately and meets quality standards, establishing TCGplayer as one of the largest online marketplaces for verification services, card games, comics, and collectible trading cards. Starting July 31, 2023, TCGplayer workers will officially be incorporated into eBay, which acquired the company in 2022. This transition is causing several challenges for workers including loss of benefits, evolving and inconsistent performance metrics, and more. These challenges, coupled with the ongoing struggle for improved wages, working conditions, and more, is why workers are demanding an end to eBay’s delay tactics and a commitment to meet workers at the bargaining table.

“TCGplayer is a Syracuse success story and a symbol of our region’s entrepreneurial spirit and hardworking people, but attempts by management to interfere in protected labor organizing activities is extremely disconcerting and potentially in violation of state and federal law. As a former teacher’s association president, I’m proud to stand with CWA and TCGplayer employees because every worker deserves a union and union workers make companies and institutions stronger,”said New York State Senator John Mannion (NY-50).

eBay and TCGplayer management claim that they respect workers’ voices to obscure the fact that they have appealed the workers’ union election victory to obstruct the bargaining process. Instead of meeting with workers at the bargaining table, TCGplayer and eBay have retained known union-busting firm Littler Mendelson, resulting in ongoing interference and coercion against workers by management.

“eBay is worth $26.17 billion dollars, but the members of the TCGunion-CWA Local 1123 still struggle to make ends meet, take sick days, or support their families. When you work for a billion dollar corporation, you shouldn’t be unable to pay your rent. Five months ago, workers won their union election in a resounding victory becoming the first group of unionized eBay workers. In response to this victory, eBay and TCGplayer have repeatedly broken labor law and tried to intimidate and silence workers. We are here today to demand that eBay and TCGplayer stop their illegal behavior and meet workers at the bargaining table so that workers can secure a fair union contract. eBay, it’s time to stop the games and respect your workers," said Chris Ryan, President of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 1123.

The workers and their supporters look forward to a positive response from eBay and TCGplayer, with the hope that the companies will respect the workers' right to union representation and enter into meaningful dialogue to reach an agreement that addresses workers’ demands. Early this month, members of the union, TCGunion-CWA met with President Biden to discuss the refusal by corporations, including eBay, to bargain a strong union contract, even after workers have won their union election.

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The Campaign to Organize Digital Employees (CODE-CWA) is a network of worker-organizers and their staff working every single day to build the voice and power necessary to ensure the future of the tech, game, and digital industries in the United States and Canada. CODE-CWA is a project of the Communications Workers of America which represents hundreds of thousands of workers throughout tech, media, telecom, and other industries who stand together to fight for justice on the job and in our communities.

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This post originally appeared on cwa-union.org.