The new Teamsters president has promised his powerful union will step up pressure on Amazon and use its own efforts to unionize the company after workers in New York voted to form the company’s first US union.
In an interview with the Guardian, Sean O’Brien said it was vital to organize Amazon, claiming that the e-commerce company had “utter disrespect” for its workers and put pressure on standards for unionized warehouse workers and truck driver in the USA.
“You have an employer like Jeff Bezos who takes a jaunt into space and he bangs his workers to fund his trip,” said O’Brien, who was sworn in as Teamsters president on March 22. He claimed Amazon workers would benefit greatly from joining the Teamsters, saying Amazon drivers and warehouse workers were treated and paid significantly less than their unionized counterparts at other companies.
“They are terrible, they are disrespectful in the way they treat their employees,” O’Brien said via Amazon.
On Friday, a final vote count showed Amazon workers in Staten Island voted for union, 2,654 for union and 2,131 against. Another vote to organize workers in Alabama is at stake. Amazon beat the union campaign by 118 votes, but the final tally awaits review of 416 contested ballots.
O’Brien said he applauds any organization that wants to take on Amazon: “I applaud anyone trying to take on a schoolyard bully like Amazon.”
The retail, wholesale and department store union is attempting to unionize an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, while a new, independent union, the Amazon Labor Union, has been behind organizing at two Amazon facilities on Staten Island.
You have an employer like Jeff Bezos who takes a jaunt into space and he bangs his workers to fund his trip
Sean O’Brien
O’Brien said no union is better positioned than the Teamsters to organize Amazon because his union of 1.3 million members has decades of experience organizing and winning good deals for warehouse workers and truck drivers. “This is the only union that has a proven track record of organizing workers in these industries,” said O’Brien.
He said the Teamsters needed to organize Amazon as a commitment to “our members” and “our largest employers,” particularly United Parcel Service and DHL. Concerned that Amazon Teamsters’ lower pay undercuts employers and Teamsters contracts, O’Brien said he doesn’t want Amazon to threaten Teamsters’ livelihoods or “lower the standards set by collective bargaining agreements.”
“We have to organize Amazon,” he said. “We must have a plan. We must carry out this plan and not be afraid to change this plan if sometimes it doesn’t work. Even a world champion team does not always win. Hopefully we have a favorable win-loss ratio.”
Before winning a five-year term as President of Teamsters, O’Brien ran a large Teamsters eatery in the Boston area for 15 years. He succeeded James P. Hoffa, who resigned after 23 years as Teamster President.
“We, the Teamsters, have the best resources out there, not just financially,” O’Brien said for unionizing Amazon. “We have the opportunity to leverage our members who work in the industry who know the benefits of working under a collective agreement and of dignity and respect in the workplace.
“We have a lot to do,” he continued. “We have a plan to focus on the big metropolitan areas,” he said, where the likelihood of winning union-building elections is greatest. He said the Teamsters would embark on “non-traditional campaigns” that would include political support and broad community support for union building. He stressed the importance of organizing from worker to worker: “We need to use our best organizers: our worker members who work in these industries.”
Amazon officials say their company’s salary levels are competitive — $18 for a full-time entry-level in Staten Island and nearly $16 in Alabama. The company advises that its benefits, including medical insurance, for full-time employees begin the day they join the company.
Amazon officials have repeatedly stated that they are committed to creating an environment where employees can thrive and feel valued and respected.
News of the Staten Island victory comes as union activity revives in the US. Joe Biden has positioned himself as the most pro-union president in generations.
“The Biden administration has done a great job for unions from the start,” O’Brien said. “An administration that isn’t afraid to support unions is great.” He particularly praised a Biden-backed 2021 law that helped protect the pensions of millions of union members and retirees, including many Teamsters, whose pension plans were severely underfunded.
O’Brien said the Teamsters and other unions need to do a much better job of explaining to Americans how unions benefit workers and the nation as a whole. He said many Americans view the Teamsters positively, despite the film The Irishman about scandals within the Teamsters half a century ago. “During the worst pandemic ever, we’re going to be faced with people who have seen us deliver packages, pick up rubbish, deliver groceries and groceries,” O’Brien said. “We have proven our worth by providing goods and services to keep this country moving.”
He spoke at length about the importance of holding politicians accountable, especially when they do not support workers and unions. “I can’t remember people’s birthdays. But I can remember the last person who screwed me. This is how we will deal with the politicians who vote against us. We will turn people against you. We will wage a campaign against you.”