Teamsters announced that thousands of Amazon warehouse workers and drivers across the U.S. are going on strike Thursday as employees at numerous locations have called for a collective bargaining contract with the giant online retailer.
According to Teamsters, 10,000 Amazon employees have authorized forming a union, including workers at fulfillment centers in the Chicago, San Francisco, New York, Atlanta and Los Angeles regions. The percentage of those on strike makes up a relatively small portion of Amazon's workforce of nearly 1.6 million.
Teamsters said Amazon failed to meet a Dec. 15 deadline for a new contract.
Janeé Roberts, a San Francisco Amazon warehouse worker, said a strike would cause "real problems" as final deliveries are being made before the holiday season.
“We are fighting for a union contract that guarantees the wages, health care, and safety that we need,” Roberts said in a press release.
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Teamsters leader Sean O'Brien said Amazon should be blamed if deliveries are delayed as a result of the strike. Teamsters said warehouse workers and drivers without collective bargaining agreements have the "legal right to honor these picket lines by withholding their labor."
“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,” said O’Brien. “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.”
Amazon said that it does not expect any impact to operations.
"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," Kelly Nantel, Amazon spokesperson, said. "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."
According to the National Retail Federation, Amazon is the United States' second-largest retailer, only trailing Walmart. In 2023, Amazon had over $250.1 billion in retail sales in the U.S.
Amazon has not said how Thursday's strike could impact deliveries just six days before Christmas and the start of Hanukkah. Amazon says it offers an average hourly pay of over $22 for customer fulfillment and transportation, and pharmacy roles.
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