Amazon ordered to stop obstructing union activity

MONTRÉAL, Aug. 1, 2024 /CNW/ - In a scathing decision handed down yesterday, the Administrative Labour Tribunal directed Amazon to stop interfering with union affairs and ordered the company to refrain from making any statements or publishing any messages that have the purpose or effect of criticizing or denigrating the organizing campaign or questioning the usefulness of a union.

The judge ordered Amazon to remove and destroy all the anti-union posters the company has put up at its facilities. Judge Henrik Ellefsen found that these messages "constitute warnings to employees about sensitive issues and are clearly likely to alarm them about the possible consequences of joining a union."

The Tribunal also ordered Amazon to post the decision and email it to all employees at the Lachine warehouse, which was the subject of the complaint filed by the Montréal Amazon Workers Union (MAWU-CSN) on June 2, 2023.

The judge further ordered Amazon to pay the union $10,000 in moral damages and $20,000 in punitive damages. The ruling stated: "In this case, since the unlawful violation of the union's rights was clearly intentional on Amazon's part, the Tribunal finds that punitive damages must be ordered to impress upon Amazon that this behaviour must cease." 

Major victory

"This is an important victory for the right of all workers to freely join a union," said CSN vice-president David Bergeron-Cyr. "Even if they work for a giant like Amazon, Quebecers have a fundamental right to come together to negotiate their conditions of employment. Workers must not bow to anti-union fear-mongering: the CSN will always be there to defend their rights."

About

The Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) already represents the nearly 250 employees at Amazon's Laval warehouse, who are seeking their first collective agreement. Founded in 1921, the CSN represents 330,000 workers in the public and parapublic sectors in all regions of Québec and across Canada.

SOURCE CSN - Confédération des syndicats nationaux

Information: Jean-Pierre Larche, Information-CSN, 514-605-0757 or [email protected]