The online retail giant Amazon.com said its rush to deliver millions of holiday packages was largely unaffected Thursday by a nationwide strike, as thousands of drivers represented by the Teamsters union walked off the job.
The strike, which began at dusk on Thursday on the West Coast, affected distribution and fulfillment hubs in the City of Industry, Palmdale and Victorville. Workers also walked off their jobs in San Francisco, Atlanta, New York City and Skokie, Illinois.
In the City of Industry, roughly 150 drivers and organizers picketed the distribution hub, where about 100 delivery vans remained in their stalls at the complex’s sprawling parking lot.
Big-rig trucks were seen backed up as they waited to enter the facility at 15930 Valley Blvd. while picketers temporarily blocked their path. Many of them chanted, “Jeff Bezos you can’t hide, we can see your greedy side!”
Bezos, the world’s second-wealthiest person with a net worth of $250 billion, founded Amazon in 1994.
Amazon spokeswoman Eileen Hards said the company had “minimal delays” at the facility and expected all packages to still be delivered,
Drivers on strike in Southern California and nationwide work for third-party contractors and are demanding higher wages, better benefits and safer working conditions.
Vanessa Valdez, a 44-year-old Ontario resident and delivery driver for Andiamo Logistics, said she’s struggles to maintain a work-life balance while delivering 300 packages daily for Amazon. A driver for six years, she said her performance is monitored by dispatchers at the distribution hub. If she doesn’t meet delivery targets, they ask whether she needs help. Falling behind too often could mean losing her job, she said.
“We don’t have the luxury of time with this job,” said Valdez, a single parent with three children who is paid $22.75 hourly. “I just want to go home and lay in bed at the end of my shift.”
She said drivers get no sick days and only four paid…
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