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Dear John,
In 2022, Amazon workers at the Staten Island fulfillment center made history by voting to form the first union at an Amazon facility in the United States. However, since that groundbreaking win, not only has Amazon intensified its efforts to crush unions at other locations, but it has refused to even meet with the newly formed Amazon Labor Union.
It’s time for Amazon to treat their workers with respect and join them at the bargaining table. The workers’ demands are straightforward and reasonable: fair wages, better benefits, and improved working conditions.
In 2022, Amazon reported 6.6 serious injuries per 100 workers -- more than double the industry average of 3.2 per 100 workers. Amazon, despite employing just 36% of the nation’s warehouse workers, accounted for more than half of all warehouse injuries in the U.S. That’s a staggering statistic.
Instead of working to improve conditions for their employees, Amazon has invested in union-busting: firing pro-union organizers, flooding workers with anti-union messaging, filing meritless lawsuits against the union, and ignoring NLRB rulings. This bad-faith behavior violates the spirit of American labor law and shows a blatant disregard for workers’ rights.
Send a clear message to Amazon’s Board of Directors: It’s time to come to the table and negotiate in good faith with the Amazon Labor Union.
Faced with endless corporate stonewalling, the Amazon Labor Union decided to join forces with the Teamsters and sponsor a strike from Black Friday through Cyber Monday. Teamsters President Sean M. O’Brien called the company to task, saying,
“The Teamsters are done asking nicely for Amazon to stop breaking the law. Amazon must commit to come to the table and bargain a Teamsters contract with its workers -- or face the consequences of its inaction. Thousands of Amazon workers around the country have courageously united to take on one of the world’s most abusive employers. Amazon has a legal obligation to recognize the Teamsters and to start negotiating.”
Amazon workers have faced unacceptable conditions, such as being required to return to work immediately after a miscarriage, not being allowed to take time off to recover from surgery, and even having to pay for their own ambulances after workplace accidents. In the most tragic instances, families are seeking justice for workers who died from job-related injuries.
Amazon employees say they’re forced to perform repetitive motions at dangerous speeds, leading to numerous injuries, and OSHA has documented this with repeated citations at multiple warehouses. The Washington State Department of Labor has also imposed fines on Amazon for requiring workers to perform tasks that heighten injury risks due to unsafe pacing.
On top of all this, workers have reported being denied medical care, wrongfully terminated, and even pushed into poverty or homelessness after being denied workers’ compensation claims. While Amazon continues to ignore the union and refuses to meet, they persist in violating workers’ medical accommodations.
Amazon may be one of the wealthiest companies in the world, but Jeff Bezos has built his empire on the backs of workers who are overworked, underpaid, and too often injured on the job. These workers deserve a fair contract -- and they need it now.
Tell Amazon: Stop your union-busting campaign and start negotiating a fair contract with the Amazon Labor Union!
Thank you for supporting Amazon workers who have bravely organized to fight for their rights.
Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action
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