Amazon Workers In Staten Island Vote To Unionize, In Nationwide First

NEW YORK CITY — Amazon workers in Staten Island voted to unionize Friday — a historic first within the online retail giant.

Warehouse workers cast 2,654 votes in favor of a union, while 2,131 rejected the bid, according to the National Labor Relations Board.

The unexpected victory has the potential to further fuel a growing worker movement within Amazon, which has historically fought against unions.

“Amazon Labor Union is the first Amazon union in US HISTORY,” the union tweeted. “POWER TO THE PEOPLE!”

Tristan Dutchin, who began working for Amazon about a year ago, told the Associated Press he’s hopeful that the new union will improve working conditions in the warehouse.

"I'm excited that we're making history," Dutchin said. "We're about to unionize a multibillion, trillion-dollar company. This will be a fantastic time for workers to be surrounded in a better, safer working environment."

The vote adds another wrinkle to New York City’s fraught relationship with Amazon.

Amazon once famously sought to build a headquarters in Long Island City under the largest economic development project in city and state historic, but abruptly scuttled the plan in 2019 amid intense local opposition.

But the retail behemoth continued smaller projects in the city, including the Staten Island warehouse where the union drive proved successful.

The Staten Island workers faced stiff opposition from the company, which launched an anti-union website targeting workers and placed English and Spanish posters across the Staten Island facility urging them to reject the union.

"As a company, we don't think unions are the best answer for our employees," an Amazon spokesperson told the Associated Press in an emailed statement. "Our focus remains on working directly with our team to continue making Amazon a great place to work."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.