eBay Violated Labor Law Trying to Bust Its First Union, NLRB Finds

E-commerce giant eBay violated labor law multiple times since a group of its workers unionized in March, labor officials have ruled. 

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) found merit in two unfair labor practice charges filed by workers at TCGPlayer, the company’s trading card selling subsidiary. The charges included allegations that eBay had refused to bargain with the union after its certification, refused to provide information it was legally obligated to provide, and unilaterally changed working conditions by removing work chairs from workstations, changing employee benefits like healthcare, and making workers sign confidentiality agreements. 

The ruling comes weeks after eBay deleted support of unions from its human rights policy, prompting the New York City and New York State comptrollers to pen a joint letter expressing concern about shareholders’ potential reaction and to urge the company to reaffirm its support for workers’ rights. The letter referenced the two charges in which the NLRB has now found merit. The NYC and NYS pension funds combined have more than 2.5 million eBay shares, worth $111 million as of June, under asset management. 

“Poor labor practices can erode shareholder value through reputational damage and legal risks,” NYC Comptroller Brad Lander told Motherboard in a statement. “As long-term investors, we insist that responsible employers uphold the fundamental labor rights of their workers. Non-interference with union organizing and good faith collective bargaining should be a basic standard for good business conduct at eBay and all companies.”

The charges alleged that eBay management had refused to bargain with workers and provide relevant information to the union, as well as denied some workers their right to union representation in meetings with management. One charge alleges that eBay management had implemented “unilateral changes” without consulting the union. These changes included that the company had “compelled employees to sign ‘offer letters’ from eBay; compelled employees to submit to background checks; compelled employees to sign confidentiality agreements; implemented changes to the sick and personal leave benefits…removed work-chairs from work stations.”

“It’s very validating,” Ethan Salerius, a receiving generalist at TCGPlayer and member of the union bargaining committee, told Motherboard regarding the NLRB’s merit determination. “There’s always a fear that the people in power will not be held to account, and [we’re] feeling like we will never see justice. Knowing that the NLRB has confirmed that there’s merit to these charges really gives me hope that we’ll be able to hold eBay to their supposed values.”

Salerius told Motherboard that eBay removing its human rights clause “tells us that they don’t want to be held accountable.” 

“Those were their values before, and when it actually comes time to bargain with their first union, they deleted it,” Salerius said. “But we’re going to hold them accountable when they do illegal things like change our working conditions, or deny our Weingarten rights, or refuse to recognize our union—those things have real consequences.”

eBay did not respond to a request for comment.

Workers at TCGPlayer first filed to unionize with the Communications Workers of America in January, becoming the first workers in eBay's history to do so. The workers are based out of the company’s Syracuse, New York facility, and span across numerous departments, from shipping operations to quality-checking products. They are responsible for authenticating and shipping every package it sends out, a CWA press release stated at the time. 

Workers’ demands included wage increases proportional to inflation, a clear discipline procedure that would be equally applied to management, and less emphasis on individual metrics in favor of teamwork. “We are adults; trust us to do our jobs!” the union’s vision statement said.

Two days after the filing, workers filed an unfair labor practice charge against the company for unlawful surveillance of union activity, claiming that management—including TCGPlayer founder and then-CEO Chedy Hampson—had “patrolled the floor of the authentication center, taking note of employees who have worn any clothes or insignia identifying them as supporters of TCGunion-CWA,” a press release stated at the time. After workers won their election on March 10, Hampson left the company. 

Salerius said that the first bargaining meeting happened in September, six months after they had won. He said that regular bargaining meetings had only begun in November, but that the bargaining committee still faced resistance to regular meetings and only met with the company around every two weeks. 

“eBay has decided repeatedly to not do the right thing. Every stage of this process, they’ve attempted to delay and make this process more difficult,” Salerius said. “I want to believe that the NLRB finding merit to these charges would change eBay’s behavior, but they have a track record of not respecting our organizing rights. I sincerely hope they come to the table in good faith and bargain a contract that gives my coworkers the pay, benefits, and dignity they deserve.”