Amazon workers at seven US facilities walked off the job early on Thursday during the holiday shopping rush, aiming to pressure the retailer into contract talks with their union.
Warehouse workers in cities including New York, Atlanta and San Francisco are taking part in the “largest” strike against Amazon, said the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which represents about 10,000 workers at 10 of the firm’s facilities.
“What we’re doing is historic,” said Leah Pensler, a warehouse worker at DCK6 in San Francisco in a press release announcing the strike. “We are fighting against a vicious union-busting campaign, and we are going to win.”
Teamsters locals are also starting picket lines at hundreds of Amazon sites around the US in support of the strike, the Teamsters said, and argued Amazon warehouse workers and delivery drivers have the legal right to honor those picket lines.