The union representing Amazon workers at a warehouse shut down last month is calling for a boycott and preparing a legal challenge against the company. Caroline Senneville, head of the CSN union, held a news conference today to denounce the actions of the retail giant. She argued that the company’s closures in Quebec were a deliberate attempt to avoid signing a collective agreement for the first time in North America.
Senneville stated that Amazon’s actions were “profoundly, essentially, anti-union” and stressed that this was not the way business is done in Quebec or Canada. On January 22, Amazon announced the closure of all seven of its facilities in Quebec, resulting in the layoff of 1,700 permanent employees. The company plans to outsource its work to third-party providers.
In May, workers at an Amazon warehouse in Laval, Quebec, successfully unionized, marking a historic first for Canada. The union was set to sign a collective agreement in the summer, but Amazon’s decision to shut down the warehouses effectively blocked this. The retail giant only has one other unionized workforce in North America, in Staten Island, N.Y., which has yet to secure a contract despite being certified in 2022.
Experts argue that Quebec’s stronger labor laws would have forced Amazon to negotiate a collective agreement or face arbitration if no agreement was reached. Amazon, however, claims that the closures are a cost-cutting measure, with spokesperson Steve Kelly stating that the move would allow the company to offer better service and savings through a third-party-only model.
Union leaders are preparing a legal challenge, claiming that the closures violate Quebec’s Labour Code by obstructing union activities. They plan to seek compensation for affected workers. The union also points to a 2004 Supreme Court ruling against Walmart, which was found to have violated Quebec labor law by closing a store shortly after unionization.
Senneville also called on government entities to cancel their contracts with Amazon and urged the public to boycott the company in solidarity with workers. “If it makes people think more about what they do when they buy things, I think that’s a good thing,” she said, highlighting a growing sentiment among Quebecers to buy local.
Source: Swifteradio.com
