Turning the Tide: Battling Amazon’s Aggressive Anti-Union Campaign
🙅♂️ Yesterday, December 19, the Teamsters labor union launched the largest strike in U.S. history against Amazon. This nationwide action reportedly comes after Amazon repeatedly refused to comply with the law and negotiate with thousands of workers who have joined the Teamsters union.
A warning from Teamsters President Sean M. O’Brien (I’ll get to him at the end of the post) 👇
« If your package is delayed during the holidays, you can blame Amazon’s insatiable greed. 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.»
🪧 The picket lines are reportedly being joined by workers from Amazon’s largest delivery stations, including DBK4 in New York City, DGT8 in Atlanta, DFX4, DAX5, and DAX8 in Southern California, DCK6 in San Francisco, and DIL7 in Skokie, Illinois. Local unions are also organizing primary pickets at hundreds of Amazon fulfillment centers nationwide. Amazon warehouse workers and drivers who don’t have collective agreements have the legal right to honor these picket lines by refusing to work.
🪧 Amazon, the second-largest corporation on the Fortune 500 list, is worth over $2.3 trillion. Yet, the company does not pay its workers enough to “make ends meet” and disregards their rights to negotiate for better wages and working conditions.
And what about Amazon? 👇
💰 The retail giant claims the strike by some drivers working for contractors will have minimal impact on its operations. While thousands have joined the strike, Amazon states that seven delivery centers are expected to operate normally.
💰 Amazon argues that the striking drivers are employees of third-party contractors and that it has no obligation to negotiate with them. However, the union and workers maintain that Amazon controls their working conditions, making it responsible for negotiations.
The National Labor Relations Board has investigated several cases, issuing at least one complaint declaring the drivers to be Amazon employees and accusing the company of violating the law by refusing to contract with them.
From Amazon’s statement on picketers outside delivery centers 👇
«What you see here are almost entirely outsiders — not Amazon employees or partners — and the suggestion otherwise is just another lie from the Teamsters. The truth is that they were unable to get enough support from our employees and partners and have brought in outsiders to come and harass and intimidate our team, which is inappropriate and dangerous.»
🎯 Let’s be honest. Working for Amazon is tough. Fighting a mega-corporation that constantly bends the law and manipulates the system is even tougher. To gain perspective, I decided to gauge the sentiment of everyday Americans. Here’s the general consensus 👇
🚩 Strong support for unions.
🚩 It’s time for workers to get their fair share.
🚩 The environment will benefit greatly once this cycle is disrupted.
🚩 For decades, corporations and their legally sanctioned lobbying of elected officials have worked against the public, leading to the systematic erosion of wages, workers’ rights, and unions.
🚩 Jeff Bezos could easily manage with a few million less each year, using that money to support the employees who contributed to his success.
🚩 Without unions, wage workers have no power or protection, as capitalism provides them with no guarantees.
🚩 Sean O’Brien, the leader of the Teamsters, has previously voiced support for Trump. So why is he now aligning with oppressed delivery drivers?