Workers at two Amazon warehouses in New York City will go on strike after the company failed to get to the bargaining table by December 15. Unionized workers at the JFK8 plant in Staten Island and the DBK4 depot in Queens Voted “overwhelmingly”. According to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), to authorize strike action to protest “Amazon’s unlawful refusal to recognize its union and negotiate a contract that addresses the company’s low wages and dangerous working conditions.” Engadget has contacted the Teamsters and Amazon Labor Union (ALU) for more details on the strikes.
The workers on JFK8 were the ones was the first in the US to unionize at an Amazon warehouse. They organized as part of the ALU, which took place this June has partnered with the Teamsters. The union, now known as ALU-IBT Local 1, represents approximately 5,500 warehouse workers at JFK8.
“Our members are willing to do whatever it takes to get a contract,” Connor Spence, president of ALU-IBT Local 1, said in a statement. “As Amazon continues to disrespect us by refusing to listen to our concerns, our movement continues to grow stronger.”
As for DBK4 — which Teamsters says is Amazon’s largest delivery station in NYC — workers there voted almost unanimously to authorize the strike. Meanwhile, workers at the DIL7 delivery depot in Skokie, Illinois also voted “overwhelmingly” to go on strike. The Teamsters also represent hundreds of workers at this station. “Amazon is one of the largest companies in the world, but we are struggling to pay our bills,” said Riley Holzworth, a DIL7 employee in a statement.
Amazon has taken legal action against unions’ election victory in JFK8, but has so far been unsuccessful in its efforts to overturn the results. The company is appealing a National Labor Relations Board decision upholding the union. As ABC News Workers reportedly claim that Amazon is using the challenges as a tactic to illegally delay collective bargaining with unions.
“For more than a year, the Teamsters have intentionally misled the public by claiming that they represent ‘thousands of Amazon employees and drivers.’ “They are not doing that, and this is another attempt to spread a false narrative,” said Amazon spokesperson Eileen Hards ABC News. “The truth is that the Teamsters actively threatened, intimidated, and attempted to force Amazon employees and third-party drivers to ride, which is illegal and the subject of multiple pending unfair labor practice charges.”
News of the impending strike comes shortly after a Senate committee released a report on an investigation into safety at Amazon facilities. The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions the company claimed ignored internal research that suggested there was a high rate of injuries in its warehouses.
