Candice Bernd reported on Twitter that the warehouse sent anti-union messages to employees telling them not to sign union cards. At Bessemer and on Long Island Amazon had an orchestrated campaign displaying anti-union messages on TV monitors within the facilities.
And at both facilities workers were getting anti-union texts. And signs were posted that said, “Don’t be misled by union organizers wearing Amazon vests.”
Workers with @TCOEW at Amazon's Staten Island facility tell me they've begun their own push for an independent union, drawing lessons from on-the-ground experiences in Bessemer. "We figure go the independent route which is worker-led" says @Shut_downAmazon https://t.co/tw6i4wRu00
— Candice Bernd (@CandiceBernd) April 19, 2021
New York Attorney General Investigation
Chris Smalls of Staten Island is a former JFK8 worker. Smalls was fired in March 2020 after he led a protest over safety amid the start of COVID-19. He claims he was fired in retaliation. And Amazon says he was in violation of social-distancing rules.
And at least one other employee, Derrick Palmer was also fired under similar circumstances. After Smalls was fired an April 2020 Amazon memo was leaked. The memo included a discussion of Amazon executives. And it outlined their PR campaign against Smalls. The idea was to make him the “face of the entire union/organizing movement.”
