Report: Workers Claim Amazon Fired Them for Union Talks
BuzzFeed News reports that four New Yorkers have filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) alleging that Amazon fired them to discourage unionization efforts.
The complaint was reportedly filed by Amazonians United, which describes itself as a "movement of workers fighting to end management’s domination in our workplaces," in mid April.
The four workers claim they were fired for "protesting terms and conditions of employment," according to the complaint BuzzFeed News obtained via public records request, because Amazon wanted to "discourage union activities" at the delivery station where they worked.
Amazon was accused of "corrupting" a vote among warehouse workers in Bessemer, Alabama on whether or not they should unionize in April 2021. But earlier this month workers at the JFK8 fulfillment center in Staten Island voted to form the company's first unionized warehouse.
Reports then indicated that Amazon was blocking certain words—including union, ethics, and restrooms, among others—from the messaging app used by its warehouse workers. Now the company has allegedly increased the intensity of its anti-union efforts by firing these workers.
BuzzFeed News says the NLRB "will review Amazonian United’s charges of retaliation and determine whether the allegations have merit."
Amazon didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
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