New York (AFP) – A US strike targeting Amazon in the peak festive period extended into a second day Friday as the retail behemoth said the labor action would not affect its business. Amazon has experienced “no disruptions at all,” a company spokeswoman told AFP. “And we aren’t anticipating any either.”
The Teamsters union on Thursday launched a strike targeting seven Amazon facilities spaced around the United States. Union officials said the stoppage continued Friday at the same locales. “When they (Amazon) come to the table, I guess that’s when we’ll stop,” Tony Rosciglione, treasurer of the Teamsters Local 804 in New York, told AFP in a phone interview from a picket line in New York City. The union, pointing to headway at Amazon locales from organizing drives, had set a December 15 deadline for Amazon to enter into negotiations on a contract.
Amazon has long fought against labor organizing campaigns, arguing in favor of a direct relationship with employees unimpeded by a third party. The statement from the Amazon spokeswoman pointed to wage hikes of 20 percent over the last six years to starting warehouse and transport workers, along with health and retirement benefits. The Teamsters characterization of its status at Amazon is a “false narrative,” the Amazon spokeswoman said. “The truth is that they were unable to get enough support from our employees and partners and have brought in outsiders to harass and intimidate our team, which is inappropriate and dangerous,” she said.
Meanwhile, a union drive at Starbucks also resulted in stoppages that began Friday. The group Starbucks Workers United announced “escalating strikes” through Christmas beginning Friday in three markets: Los Angeles, Chicago, and Seattle. The labor group, which has unionized more than 500 stores across the United States, argues that Starbucks has “backtracked” on commitments to bargain productively on a contract.
But Starbucks described as “not sustainable” union demands for an immediate 64 percent hike in the minimum wage, with a three-year increase of 77 percent. “There has been no significant impact to our store operations,” a Starbucks spokesman said Friday. “We are aware of disruption at a small handful of stores, but the overwhelming majority of our US stores remain open and serving customers as normal.”
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