The second Prime Day sale of the year is being advertised as a way to get Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals early. As it courts consumers, the workers who handle the mass amount of packages that flow through Amazon are demanding better pay and working conditions. As Amazon prepares to enter one of its busiest seasons, the threat of strikes, walkouts, and possibly another unionized warehouse are all threatening.
On Wednesday, workers at Amazon's ALB1 facility in Albany, New York, began voting on whether to join the Amazon Labor Union, the group that unionized Amazon's JFK8 facility and is currently negotiating with Amazon for a contract. The National Labor Relations Board needs to confirm that at least 30 percent of the workers at the center are interested in the election before they can vote.
As Prime Day packages are being fulfilled, there is a threat of a work strike. The Inland Empire air cargo facility in San Bernardino will be the site of a strike on Friday. According to More Perfect Union, the company is facing a strike in Buford, Georgia, as well as a strike in Stone Mountain, Georgia.
Workers in Illinois are demanding protection against violence, injury, and sexual harassment. Workers in California demanded basic safety measures after Amazon failed to respond to a strike where workers accused the company of not giving them breaks or aid during excessive heat. The company has installed new air conditioning equipment at a facility where a worker died during the last Prime Day, as well as how it dealt with high temperatures in the past.
According to Jane Chung from The Worker Agency, Amazon has responded to workers who are organizing to improve their jobs by bringing in high-paid outside consultants who harass and follow workers around to discourage them from organizing for better conditions. She said that the Prime Day events make it more difficult for employees to fulfill the massive growth in packages ordered, transported, and delivered.
New groups of employees are asking for more money. The minimum wage for Amazon's warehouse and transportation workers was set at fifteen dollars an hour in December of last year. Inland Empire Amazon Workers United doesn't think that's enough to keep up with rising costs of living Critical fulfillment workers have a chance to pressure the company for better pay because of the busy season.
Even though Amazon is worried about running through the entire labor pool in some areas, it still upsets some of the workers it depends on to keep its operations afloat. A worker in Illinois was fired for trying to get the company to act after racist death threats were written on the bathroom walls. Dozens of workers were suspended by Amazon after they refused to return to work in a warehouse filled with smoke. The company retaliated against those who spoke out or organized, something that the National Labor Relations Board has accused the company of doing.
It is not known how much impact strikes and walkouts have on the company. Although it doesn't seem like customers are noticing mass shipping delays, Amazon didn't immediately respond to the questions about the effects workers were having. If you are not part of a union that voted to do so, there are different rules about how you can strike.
It doesn't seem as if workers will stop trying to get better treatment from Amazon, and it feels like we may be reaching a breaking point The work will continue even after Prime Day ends. While organizers at the company have used the event to stress how important they are to the experience, it seems unlikely that they will stop their demonstrations any time soon.
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