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Amazon workers vote against unionization in New York
Labor organizers and experts say they expect the momentum to organize at Amazon’s more than 1,000 warehouses across the country to continue despite the loss.
Labor organizers and experts say they expect the momentum to organize at Amazon’s more than 1,000 warehouses across the country to continue despite the loss.
Amazon prospered during the COVID-19 pandemic as homebound people eager to limit human contact turned online to purchase what they need. But growth has slowed as vaccinated Americans feel more comfortable going out.
In a notice sent to sellers Wednesday, the company said its costs had gone up since the beginning of the pandemic due to increases in hourly wages, the hiring of workers and construction of more warehouses.
If a majority of Amazon workers votes yes in either Bessemer or Staten Island, it would mark the first successful U.S. organizing effort in the company’s history.
Amazon is gearing up for its toughest labor fight yet, with two separate union elections coming to a head as soon as next week that could provide further momentum to the recent wave of organizing efforts across the country.
The House Judiciary Committee escalated the bipartisan battle against the world’s biggest online retailer with a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, referring the case for a criminal inquiry.
Amazon plans to add hundreds of jobs at the facility, including receiving, sorting and shipping, and network logistics support.
Another major outage in Amazon’s cloud computing network has raised questions about the vulnerability of the internet and its concentration in the hands of a few firms.
The letter from more than a dozen lawmakers asks Amazon for documents and details about its policies for safety drills, storm shelters and flexible working hours during storms.
Kentucky’s governor says a devastating tornado touched down for 227 miles—more than 200 in his state—and deaths were feared in 10 counties.
Amazon’s announcement follows a secretive process in which Elkhart County officials approved an estimated $10 million tax break package for the project without revealing the company involved.
Amazon’s starting pay is still $15 per hour, but with labor markets growing so tight in regions of the country, the company said new hires could make as much as $22.50 an hour. It’s also paying sign-on bonuses of $3,000 in some places.
Amazon said all the open roles are for tech jobs and corporate positions. Separately, the company has been hiring thousands of warehouse workers to pack and ship online orders.
For Amazon, this could be an opportunity to shake things up: Its 30,000-square-foot department stores would be about one-third the size of a traditional mall anchor, mirroring plans by many of the country’s retailers to open smaller, more easily-accessible stores.
The move follows steps by a slew of other retailers, including Walmart and Target, to mandate masks for their workers.
The Amazon founder was accompanied by a hand-picked group: his brother, an 18-year-old from the Netherlands and an 82-year-old aviation pioneer from Texas — the youngest and oldest to ever fly in space.
The benefit can reimburse the cost of using a bike-sharing program, parking and even maintenance to cover two tune-ups a year, the company said.
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, a union that represents 1.4 million workers, is set to vote Thursday on whether to make organizing Amazon workers its main priority.
The company, the second-largest private employer in the United States behind Walmart, is making the change as states legalize cannabis or introduce laws banning employers from testing for it.
MGM’s library includes more than 4,000 movies, including “Silence of the Lambs” and “Thelma & Louise,” and 17,000 TV shows, such as reality TV staples “Shark Tank” and “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.” Amazon also will get cable channel Epix out of the deal.