Amazon Faces Critical Union Vote at North Carolina Facility

CNN reported, more than 4,000 Amazon employees in Garner, North Carolina, start voting Monday in a union election that could create only the second unionized Amazon facility in the United States. Sponsored by the Carolina Amazonians United for Solidarity and Empowerment, or CAUSE, which is an organizing group operating within a state whose union representation remains at an impressively low: 2.4% workers are unionized.

The push for higher pay and improved workplace conditions is currently led by several Amazon employees as spearheaded by Italo Medelius-Marsano, along with co-leader, Ryan Brown. While Amazon starts people at $18.50 per hour with a cap of $23.80, CAUSE is asking for $30 an hour, citing the high cost of living in the Raleigh area and the gigantic profits-amassing an estimated $59 billion in net income for 2024. According to Amazon’s spokesperson Eileen Hards, “The fact is, Amazon already offers what many unions are requesting: safe, inclusive workplaces, competitive pay, industry-leading benefits.”

The union vote takes place as the labor activism on Amazon facilities gains momentum across the country, like the successful whole foods store on Philadelphia and in the pre-Christmas Teamsters strike. The CAUSE wins the election notwithstanding, it faces the challenge to get a contract since Amazon also contests its lost election in the Staten Island that occurred in the year 2022 and, on the contrary, has crushed the organizing drive in Alabama and New York City. The six-day voting period closes on Saturday and its results should follow soon thereafter.