Amazon accused of violating US labor law

A group of Amazon.com workers filed an indictment with U.S. labor regulators on Thursday after a local leadership and two employees were arrested outside a company warehouse, according to documents obtained. by Reuters.

The group seeks to form a syndicate in a New York company facility.

Christian Smalls told Reuters on Wednesday he was arrested while delivering food to warehouse workers as part of the union campaign he is leading.

Smalls, a former warehouse worker, seeks to turn Amazon’s JFK8 Staten Island into a unionized facility. Workers will vote on the proposal from March 25.

The unfair labor practice allegation filed Thursday by a group of workers alleges that the company violated an agreement it reached in December with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

As part of the agreement, Amazon has pledged not to limit workers’ ability to engage with their colleagues in areas outside of the work environment during their time off.

In the indictment, the group accuses Amazon of arresting employees Brett Daniels and Jason Anthony on Wednesday in retaliation for their involvement in the organization.

Smalls previously worked at the warehouse and was fired in 2020 for allegedly violating the company’s security policies.

Amazon spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said the agreement regulates employees’ rights to engage in (company) property, and that the company did nothing to prevent worker engagement.

Amazon called the police on Smalls, not the other two workers, Nantel said.

“Smalls — who is not an Amazon employee — broke in repeatedly despite multiple warnings. Yesterday, when officers asked Smalls to leave, he chose to escalate the situation and the police made their own decision on how to respond,” Nantel said.