Amazon workers across seven facilities in New York, Georgia, California, and Illinois went on strike Thursday to lobby for better benefits, higher wages, and safer working conditions.
TakeAway Points:
- On Thursday, Amazon employees went on strike at seven of its locations in New York, Georgia, California, and Illinois.
- Teamsters union members are organising the walkout in an effort to get Amazon to engage in negotiations.
- “You can blame Amazon’s unquenchable greed if your delivery is delayed during the holidays,” stated Teamsters President Sean O’Brien in a statement.
- According to the report, in June, employees in the Amazon Labour Union, which spearheaded the Staten Island movement, voted to affiliate with the Teamsters after struggling to negotiate a contract with Amazon.
- According to the Teamsters website, nearly 10,000 Amazon workers have joined the organization, which represents less than 1% of the company’s workforce of 1.53 million as of Dec. 31, 2023.
Amazon workers strike across seven facilities at peak of holiday shopping season
In an effort to advocate for improved benefits, greater pay, and safer working conditions, Amazon employees at seven locations in New York, Georgia, California, and Illinois went on strike on Thursday.
The strike, organized by members of the Teamsters union, is intended to pressure Amazon to come to the negotiating table and avoid disruptions during the peak of the holiday shopping season. The union had previously given Amazon until Sunday to agree to bargaining dates for a contract.
“If your package is delayed during the holidays, you can blame Amazon’s insatiable greed,” Teamsters President Sean O’Brien said in a statement. “We gave Amazon a clear deadline to come to the table and do right by our members. They ignored it.”
In a statement, an Amazon spokesperson said the Teamsters have been on a yearlong campaign to “intentionally mislead the public.” While the union says it represents thousands of employees and drivers, the protesters at the sites are “almost entirely outsiders,” Amazon said.
“The truth is that they were unable to get enough support from our employees and partners and have brought in outsiders to harass and intimidate our team, which is inappropriate and dangerous,” the company said, adding that it’s “continuing to focus on getting customers their holiday orders.”
A representative for the Teamsters didn’t immediately respond to an inquiry about whether outsiders were participating in the strike.
Amazon workers joins Teamsters
The Teamsters website says that nearly 10,000 Amazon workers have joined the organization. That represents less than 1% of the company’s workforce of 1.53 million, as of Dec. 31, 2023. The union said Thursday’s campaign is the largest strike against Amazon in American history.
According to the report, Amazon has long opposed unions among its workforce, but efforts to organize started materializing in 2022, when warehouse workers on New York’s Staten Island voted to join a union. Amazon had aggressively fought unionization efforts, so it was a stinging defeat for the company.
In June, employees in the Amazon Labour Union, which spearheaded the Staten Island movement, voted to affiliate with the Teamsters after struggling to negotiate a contract with Amazon.
