As the holiday season gathers momentum, Amazon faces a looming challenge that could disrupt its busiest time of year. Thousands of Teamsters Union workers are threatening to strike on Thursday, 19 December, aiming to pressure the retail giant into negotiations during the height of the holiday shopping rush.
While the union represents only about 1% of Amazon's hourly workforce, the impact could be significant, particularly in crucial regions such as New York City, according to a report by Reuters.
With multiple warehouses and delivery depots in the area, a strike at unionised facilities has the potential to disrupt operations and create bottlenecks, adding strain to Amazon's already demanding holiday logistics.
Amazon Faces Union Pressure
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters has announced that unionised workers from New York City, Skokie, Illinois, Atlanta, San Francisco, and Southern California will join the picket line, demanding better wages and working conditions in their contracts.
The countdown is on. The Teamsters union, representing approximately 10,000 workers at 10 Amazon U.S. facilities, has announced a strike.
Starting Thursday, workers at seven of these facilities will hit the picket lines, potentially disrupting Amazon's operations.
Amazon Teamsters from facilities all across the country are uniting to win their first Teamsters contract at the trillion-dollar company.
— Teamsters (@Teamsters) December 14, 2024
Amazon is legally obligated to bargain with more than 20 Teamsters driver and warehouse units nationwide, but Amazon just keeps breaking the… pic.twitter.com/wmyBZ47KXd
The union's Sunday deadline for Amazon to start negotiations has passed, and workers at various facilities have voted to authorise a strike.
To further amplify their demands, Teamsters local unions are planning to set up picket lines, a boundary set by workers on strike, at hundreds of Amazon Fulfillment Centers across the country, as announced in a statement on Wednesday.
A Test Of Strength
Many observers believe Amazon is unlikely to negotiate, fearing it could set a precedent for further unionisation efforts.
'Amazon clearly has developed a strategy of ignoring their workers' rights to collectively organise and negotiate,' said Benjamin Sachs, a Harvard Law School professor of labour and industry.
Over two years have passed since workers at a Staten Island warehouse made history as the first Amazon facility in the U.S. to unionise. Yet, Amazon continues to refuse recognition of the union, Sachs noted.
Amazon's Anti-Union Stance
Amazon, which has expressed a preference for direct worker relationships, has actively opposed unionisation efforts while claiming to support workers' right to organise. Amazon has launched a multi-pronged legal attack on the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
The company has filed objections to the 2022 Staten Island election, alleging bias within the agency. It has even gone so far as to challenge the NLRB's constitutionality in a September federal lawsuit. Amazon has accused the Teamsters of illegally coercing workers to join the union.
In the face of years of delays and stall tactics by Amazon, rank-and-file Teamsters of Amazon Labor Union-International Brotherhood of Teamsters (ALU-IBT) Local 1 held a solidarity rally and cookout outside of the e-commerce giant’s JFK8 warehouse in Staten Island to kick off an… pic.twitter.com/xrejVG47QX
— Teamsters (@Teamsters) October 16, 2024
Meanwhile, the Teamsters have indicated that the Staten Island warehouse and another southern California facility could join the strike at any moment.
According to Jake Rosenfeld, a sociology professor at Washington University in St. Louis, Amazon is unlikely to negotiate with the Teamsters anytime soon.
Rosenfeld argues that there needs to be more legal incentive for the company to do so, as it has faced no significant consequences for ignoring the demands of the Staten Island workers. 'It's been a very successful strategy; the work continues there, and there is still no contract,' he said.
A Growing Movement
Amazon's labour practices have come under fire internationally. Worker walkouts in Spain and Germany over pay and working conditions in recent years serve as a reminder of the ongoing fight for better treatment at the retail giant.
Amazon, the world's second-largest private employer after Walmart, has been a frequent target for unions.
While the company emphasises industry-leading wages and automation to reduce repetitive strain, some workers argue its drive for speed and efficiency can lead to injuries. Amazon's labour troubles are set to continue.
Workers at a Philadelphia Whole Foods have initiated a union election, a significant development since Amazon's 2017 acquisition of the grocery chain.
Furthermore, an administrative judge has ordered a third union election at an Alabama warehouse, citing Amazon's illegal efforts to undermine unionisation.
