At the height of the hectic holiday gift-giving season, the Teamsters Union said that thousands of employees at Amazon locations across the United States went on strike Thursday, halting operations.
The union, which claims to represent some 10,000 employees at the nationwide locations of the mammoth online retailer, referred to the action as the “largest strike against Amazon in US history.”
With additional Amazon Teamsters “prepared to join them,” the union stated in a statement, workers will picket at locations in New York, Atlanta, southern California, San Francisco, and Illinois.
“The nationwide action follows Amazon’s repeated refusal to follow the law and bargain with the thousands of Amazon workers who organized with the Teamsters,” added the statement.
As Americans scramble to send last-minute gifts, the strike threatens to seriously hamper Amazon order deliveries less than a week before the Christmas holiday.
In the statement, Teamsters CEO Sean O’Brien added, “You can blame Amazon’s insatiable greed if your package is delayed during the holidays.”
“We set a firm deadline for Amazon to attend the meeting and treat our members fairly. They disregarded it.
