John,

For too long we’ve seen headline after headline about billion-dollar corporations raking in record profits while paying their workers low wages or busting union organizing efforts.

Some of these corporations—and the billionaires who own them—also pay lower income tax rates than the workers in their warehouses and factories. Amazon is one of those corporations.

Based on his IRS tax filings, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos paid ZERO federal income taxes in 2007 and 2011. And he paid just a 1% federal income tax rate based on his $99 BILLION in wealth growth from 2014 to 2018.[1]

Unions are essential to making sure there is an equal playing field between workers and corporations and their billionaire owners. Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund and our tax fairness allies were so excited when efforts to unionize Amazon’s Staten Island fulfillment center succeeded last year under the leadership of Chris Smalls.

That’s why we’re joining Chris Smalls and the rest of the Amazon Labor Union to demand Amazon come to the table with workers bargaining for fair wages, safe working conditions, and benefits. Read Chris Smalls’ message below and add your name today >>

Frank Clemente
Executive Director
Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund

[1] “Summary of ProPublica’s Report on Billionaire Tax Dodgers,” Americans for Tax Fairness, July 23, 2021

-- Chris Smalls' message --

John,

I’m Chris Smalls, President of the Amazon Labor Union.

Last year, our union made history at the JFK8 fulfillment center on Staten Island, when we became the first American Amazon Warehouse to win a union election.

We organized for over a year. Amazon spent that year spending more than a million dollars trying to fight our union. They had us arrested for organizing at a bus stop that warehouse workers take to work. We weren’t breaking any law, but the cops arrested us anyway.

In truth, Amazon is the one who broke the law during this organizing campaign. We filed over 400 unfair labor practice complaints with the National Labor Relations Board. They did so knowingly, because they know that by the time they’re punished or fined, the organizing campaign is over and they assume that they will have won.

We spent 11 months inside, outside the building, at the bus stop, earning the trust of these workers, building relationships, creating GoFundMes for people that were fired―people that were homeless, living in shelters, unable to pay their bills. We fed people. We built community. And on Staten Island, we won.

That’s the stuff that the press covered. But when the cameras moved on, we’ve still been here. But instead of accepting that we won, Amazon moved on to Phase 2 of their union-busting campaign: Stalling.

Instead of coming to the bargaining table, they filed 25 bogus objections with the NLRB, seeking to throw out our ballots or decertify the union election. Amazon Labor Union has our own Phase 2: that’s where you come in.

Will you sign our petition, demanding that Amazon recognize the Amazon Labor Union and sit down and bargain for fair wages, safe working conditions, and benefits we can live on?

Remember: Jeff Bezos isn’t the one who packs your packages. The workers do. This is not a left or right thing. It’s not Democrats and Republicans. It’s a workers thing.

Solidarity forever,

Chris Smalls
President
Amazon Labor Union