Early in the morning, Teamsters from Local 455 and Local 17 showed up outside DEN3 to pass flyers to workers coming in and out of the warehouse. Picketers carried signs that demanded Amazon recognize the union and stop breaking the law through unfair labor practices.

The Teamsters in California, New York and Atlanta have been in the process of forming a union, but Amazon has refused to recognize their union and negotiate with the workers for a collective bargaining agreement. The actions happening now are part of a push throughout the country demanding that Amazon recognize their union and come to the bargaining table.

Teamsters President Sean O’Brien has announced that warehouse workers and drivers who are in the places where a majority of workers have signed cards to form a union will be on strike until an agreement is met. O’Brien called for Teamsters locals across the country to show solidarity and to try to get Amazon involved.

Both Amazon and the mainstream media have been critical of the strike because of the effects it will have on holiday shopping. However, the Teamsters union has repeatedly clarified that this would not be an issue if Amazon came to the bargaining table. Amazon has also claimed that this strike is not happening or is not causing any delays. At the same time, they have used police to attempt to force strikers off Amazon property. Amazon has also been hiring scabs across the country and demanding workers in non-union shops work upwards of 70 or 80 hours in the next few days.

Two women onsite at the pickets said that they were told they would be fired if they did not work the three 16-hour shifts they were scheduled for Christmas. Amazon has been able to become the company that it is today due to the labor of its large workforce, yet many of its workers say they can’t afford homes, food, cars or insurance while putting their body on the line every day at work.

The battle at Amazon could have ramifications for other companies that use similar models of low-wage workers and high profits. Amazon has run a robust and expensive union busting operation across its company and the Teamsters union hopes that these actions can signal an uptick in worker power and organization at Amazon.

Many community groups as well as other unions, such as SEIU, IBEW, SMART, UA, SBWU and AFL-CIO, came out to show their support for the Teamsters effort to organize at Amazon.

#ThorntonCO #DenverCO #Teamsters #Amazon #AmazonStrike #Strike #Labor #UnionPower

Thornton, CO – Teamsters Local 455, which represents around 10,000 workers in the Denver area, organized their members to participate in a solidarity picket on December 19 in support of workers at Amazon who are organizing to start a union.

The picket started around 4 a.m., just as overnight workers were leaving and morning shift was coming in. Later in the morning, around 9 a.m., roughly 50 community and labor supporters came out to the Amazon DEN3 fulfilment center and picketed to show their support. They held signs reading “Amazon is unfair” and “TANNC Amazon ULP strike.” The latter slogan refers to the Teamsters Amazon National Negotiating Committee, the leading body behind the unfair labor practice strike taking place across the country at Amazon.

The picket attracted activists from across the state of Colorado, including tenant organizers, Starbucks workers, and Teamsters.

“You should be able to work and be able to afford groceries and these workers are struggling. That’s not fair,” stated Alejandra Beatty, president of the Boulder Labor Council.

Amazon rank and file in targeted facilities across the country are picketing due to Amazon refusing to bargain with the union, which is an unfair labor practice.

Amazon has been known for horror stories in the treatment of their workers, from denying bathroom breaks to arbitrary firing. Today, Amazon workers are fighting for their interests in an organized way.

Amazon claims that their workers are subcontracted and therefore cannot join a union. However, that fiction is finally being challenged on a national level. and the efforts appear significantly organized.

Almost 1 in 150 Americans currently works for Amazon, and solidarity has played a significant role in the strike strategy as labor and community supporters across the country have joined into picket lines to support the striking workers.

#ThorntonCO #Amazon #TeamstersLocal455