Teamsters Strike Begins at Amazon Centers in Southern California and Other US Cities

Amazon workers walk the picket line outside an Amazon facility in the City of Industry, Calif., on Dec. 19, 2024. Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Union workers went on strike at seven Amazon fulfillment centers in Southern California and several other U.S. cities on Dec. 19 as attempts to reach a labor agreement with the mega online marketplace stalled, according to the Teamsters organization.

Amazon’s warehouse and logistics workers officially organized and became affiliated with the 1.3 million-member International Brotherhood of Teamsters in June, according to the union, and efforts to produce a bargaining agreement with the company have failed.

The organization claims thousands of workers walked off their jobs at fulfillment centers in New York, Atlanta, Southern California, San Francisco, and Skokie, Illinois.

“If your package is delayed during the holidays, you can blame Amazon’s insatiable greed,” said Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien in a statement. “We gave Amazon a clear deadline to come to the table and do right by our members. They ignored it.”

Union members alleged that the company has unfair working conditions and wages.

Amazon’s Response

Amazon denied the claims, saying that the union is misleading the public.

“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,” Amazon spokeswoman Kelly Nantel told The Epoch Times in an email.

Amazon employees can choose whether or not to join a union, according to the company. There have never been union elections, bargaining orders, or bargaining decisions.

The company also said it already offers competitive pay, health benefits on day one, and opportunities for career growth.

“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 said.

The company said that the people on strike outside Amazon facilities were mostly not Amazon employees or partners.

Amazon workers walk the picket line outside an Amazon facility in the City of Industry, Calif., on Dec. 19, 2024. Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Workers’ wages have increased by 20 percent over the past six years in the United States, according to Amazon. As of September, the average base wage was $22 per hour with new benefits that include a no-cost Prime membership.

The Teamsters union did not immediately return a request for comment about the company’s claims Thursday.

Amazon has more than 185 fulfillment centers globally, including more than 100 in the United States, and more than 1 million employees around the world, according to the company.