Inside the Historic Amazon Union Vote: 'I Think This Will Be Like a Fire Starter'

[PoliticAverse]

From the day she stepped foot into the Amazon warehouse, Jennifer Bates could tell this was going to be a difficult job. Bates works in the fulfillment center in Bessemer, AL, where she says she works long, physically-challenging shifts with short breaks. Other employees have reported needing to meet demanding production quotas, with Amazon closely tracking time spent going to the bathroom or getting water. It was these conditions that prompted Bates to help organize the company’s biggest unionization effort since Amazon was founded more than 25 years ago.

Currently, 5,800 Bessemer warehouse workers—many of whom are Black and women—are voting on whether they want to become the first U.S. Amazon employees to unionize, a groundbreaking moment that could set off a domino effect of organizing across the company. Below, in her own words, Bates shares how her co-workers got here—and what they’re still fighting for.

That first week at the Amazon warehouse was rough. My sister, who worked there before me, told me it would get worse. But I hung in there. I thought maybe I was just too new at the job. I thought maybe it would get better.

But as time went on I realized that wasn’t going to happen.

Read the rest at: https://health-beauty-advice.com/2021/02/27/inside-the-historic-amazon-union-vote-i-think-this-will-be-like-a-fire-starter/