How the Amazon strike could impact the arrival of your packages this Christmas

Workers at Amazon, the global e-commerce giant, are striking in the U.S. on Thursday, demonstrating their strength just as holiday shopping and shipping reach their peak.

In 2023, Amazon made over $30.4 billion in profit. Meanwhile, the average warehouse worker earned around $22 an hour, according to the company, though job sites like ZipRecruiter place the figure closer to $17.50. The difference between the profits generated and the pay and benefits offered has led many Amazon workers to unionize with the Teamsters. However, the union argues that the company has not recognized the union and that the strike was necessary because of Amazon’s refusal “to follow the law and bargain with the thousands of Amazon workers who organized.” The strike is the largest in Amazon’s history, with 10 locations authorizing a strike, with picket lines forming at hundreds of other locations, according to the labor outlet, More Perfect Union.

Teamsters call on the public to show solidarity with striking workers

The Teamsters understand that for many, it may be frustrating that their packages might not arrive in time for Christmas. However, if ensuring deliveries is Amazon’s priority, the Teamsters believe negotiating in good faith with the union is the only solution. Should the public be entitled to an easy Christmas through Amazon’s services at the expense and exploitation of hundreds of thousands of warehouse and delivery workers? That is the question the Teamsters are asking the public to consider as they grapple with the delays.

“If your package is delayed during the holidays, you can blame Amazon’s insatiable greed,” said Teamster General President Sean M. O’Brien. He made it clear that his union “gave Amazon a clear deadline to come to the table and do right by our members,” but that deadline was “ignored” by executives. Rather than blaming workers seeking fair pay and working conditions, the union argues that Amazon’s “greedy executives had every chance to show decency and respect for the people who make their obscene profits possible.”

Amazon has responded to the threat of the strike by calling it illegal, confirming that the company in fact does not see the workers as Teamsters. The company instead argues that many of the workers who are on strike are not employed by Amazon, but a third party. CNN spoke with a few workers who found such claims ludicrous, pointing out that the uniform they wear has the Amazon logo, as do the trucks driven.

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