Workers at the only unionized Amazon warehouse in Canada sat down last Thursday to negotiate a contract for workers.
Since July, Unifor Local 114 had been preparing to head into bargaining for 700 workers at an Amazon warehouse in Delta, B.C. known as “YVR2.”
But the path to getting a first agreement at YVR2 has been difficult, gnarled by legal challenges and accusations that both sides are abusing the unionization process.
It’s the second time Amazon workers have reached this stage of bargaining in Canada. Earlier this year, Amazon closed its Quebec warehouses before unionized workers in that province got a contract.
Amazon spokesperson Eileen Hards said the company plans to fight the original certification because it goes against employees’ wishes.
Meanwhile, the union has filed two challenges at the BC Labour Relations Board alleging the company is still interfering with unionization.
Despite the legal tension, both sides say they have started to discuss a first collective agreement in good faith.
“It’s just a really great day to be able to see Amazon workers be able to sit down in British Columbia and bargain,” said Unifor western regional director Gavin McGarrigle.
“We expect sophistication, and we’re ready for a sophisticated conversation about how we get that agreement.”
According to McGarrigle, Unifor is looking to discuss workload and safety standards at the bargaining table, plus address alleged favouritism by management.
McGarrigle said workers have shared concerns they are sometimes asked to do too much work too fast, leading to injury. He added that some employees felt work was assigned based on favouritism, leading them to do physical work outside their comfort zone.
“They couldn’t really figure out exactly what standard anyone was being held to at a given time,” he said. “Ultimately, if you’re not being listened to and the pace is not correct for you, it’s just not safe. Injuries pile up.”
He said the union is hoping to negotiate clear rules on employee workloads and productivity, and better health and safety protections.
A miasma of legal challenges and yet-unproven allegations hangs over the talks.
In July, after ruling that Amazon had interfered with unionization, the BC Labour Relations Board certified Unifor as the bargaining agent for 700 workers at YVR2.
Amazon’s Hards said the corporation plans to continue to appeal the decision.
“The BCLRB’s decision is wrong on the facts and the law, and it deprived our employees of their right to have their voices heard,” she said. “We look forward to demonstrating that through the legal process, and in the meantime, we’ll continue to comply with the law.”
Amazon is fighting Unifor’s certification in a currently unresolved case at the BC Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, at the BC Labour Relations Board, Unifor accused Amazon of intimidating staff and freezing pay as the two sides prepare to bargain. These allegations have not been tested before the board.
Unifor is the largest union in Canada’s private sector, representing 320,000 workers.
It is organizing other Amazon locations in the province, including YVR3, an Amazon fulfilment centre near the Skytrain’s Braid Station in New Westminster, B.C.
The union is up against Seattle, Wash.-based giant tech company Amazon, worth more than US $2.3 trillion by the end of October.
The company has faced allegations of dirty tricks and union-busting in the United States.
If Unifor gets a first contract, workers at YVR2 will become the first Amazon union in Canada to get a collective agreement.
While the warehouse has the only Amazon union in Canada, it’s not the first. That title goes to 230 Amazon workers at a warehouse in Laval, Que., who certified with the Confédération des syndicats nationaux last May.
But before CSN could get a collective agreement for 230 workers at that warehouse, Amazon closed all seven of its facilities in Quebec, laying off thousands of employees.
In that province, Amazon switched to third-party parcel delivery companies to fulfill its orders.
Back in B.C., Unifor’s McGarrigle said he expects to reach a deal with Amazon.
“We think Amazon had a pretty big black eye nationwide for that,” McGarrigle said about the company’s actions in Quebec. “But we expect that [Amazon] is here for the long haul, as are we. That’s why we say the best way forward here is to start negotiating agreements.”
