Contention surrounds a job action by the Teamsters against Amazon with the union characterizing it as a strike against the company while Amazon asserts that neither employees at the company nor at its affiliated independent delivery partners are represented by the Teamsters.
Kelly Nantel, an Amazon spokesperson, said, “For more than a year now, the Teamsters have continued to intentionally mislead the public, claiming that they represent ‘thousands of Amazon employees and drivers.’ They don’t, and this is another attempt to push a false narrative. The truth is that the Teamsters have actively threatened, intimidated and attempted to coerce Amazon employees and third-party drivers to join them, which is illegal and is the subject of multiple pending unfair labor practice charges against the union.”
Nantel said picketers who arrived at certain Amazon facilities on December 20 are not employees on strike.
“What you’re seeing at these sites are almost entirely outsiders, not Amazon employees or partners, and the suggestion otherwise is just another lie from the Teamsters,” Nantel noted. “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. We appreciate all our team’s great work to serve their customers and communities, and thanks to them, we’re not seeing any impact to customers’ orders.”
Amazon employees in one distribution center in Staten Island, NY, did conduct a union organizing vote, but the company has taken action to overturn the election based on unfair tactics by the Teamsters.
For its part, the Teamsters have claimed the union launched the largest strike against Amazon in U.S. history at 6 a.m. eastern time on December 19 because the company’s refusal to follow established law and bargain with the thousands of Amazon workers who organized with the Teamsters.
“If your package is delayed during the holidays, you can blame Amazon’s insatiable greed,” said Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien. “We gave Amazon a clear deadline to come to the table and do right by our members. They ignored it. These greedy executives had every chance to show decency and respect for the people who make their obscene profits possible. Instead, they’ve pushed workers to the limit and now they’re paying the price. This strike is on them.”
