Teamsters union launches historic nationwide strike against Amazon: 'Paying the price'
Thousands of Amazon workers organized under the Teamsters union went on strike at 6 a.m. Thursday after the company's "repeated refusal to follow the law and bargain."
Amazon Teamsters at seven facilities in Skokie, Illinois; New York City; Atlanta; San Francisco; and Southern California are participating in the "largest strike" against the trillion-dollar company in American history, the union said in a news release. Workers at other facilities are prepared to join them.
Though Teamsters says it represents about 10,000 people across 10 Amazon facilities in the U.S., the company doesn't recognize workers' affiliation with the union.
Amazon says the Teamsters union is "intentionally [misleading] the public" because they don't represent Amazon employees and drivers, company spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a statement to Fox Business.
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"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," Nantel 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."
Nantel also said the company "does not expect any impact on our operations."
Teamsters spokesperson Kara Deniz responded to Amazon's statement, saying the company is "gaslighting the American public with their false narratives."
"The truth is, over 20 bargaining units, representing nearly 9,000 employees have successfully organized because for many years the company has exploited and abused workers, and these workers are fed up and fighting back," Deniz said.
"No matter how massive Amazon’s corporate PR machine is, they cannot fool the American public into believing drivers delivering Amazon packages in Amazon-branded vans don’t actually work for Amazon," Deniz continued. "No one believes this nonsense. Amazon needs to stop avoiding their legal obligation to these workers and get to the bargaining table now."
The strike comes after Teamsters says Amazon ignored the union's Dec. 15 deadline to negotiate new contracts for higher wages, better benefits and safer work conditions.
"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," Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said in the release.
He continued: "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 Fulfillment Centers across the country will have primary picket lines set up by local unions, Teamsters said, and warehouse workers and drivers without collective bargaining agreements can legally honor them by withholding their labor.
"Amazon is one of the biggest, richest corporations in the world," said Gabriel Irizarry, a driver at DIL7 in Skokie. "They talk a big game about taking care of their workers, but when it comes down to it, Amazon does not respect us and our right to negotiate for better working conditions and wages. We can’t even afford to pay our bills."
Amazon said team members are already offered competitive pay, immediate health benefits, a 401k match and career growth opportunities, adding that the company's average base wage was increased to $22 per hour in September.
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In an X post on Wednesday night, Teamsters said its Amazon workers have run out of patience for the company and they are getting "strike ready" to win the contract they deserve.
"What we’re doing is historic," said Leah Pensler, a warehouse worker at DCK6 in San Francisco. "We are fighting against a vicious union-busting campaign, and we are going to win."
FOX Business' Pilar Arias contributed to this report.