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Federal labor regulator says delivery drivers are Amazon employees

By Caroline O’Donovan</p><p>washington post</p><p>

In a loss for Amazon that could force it to meet the Teamsters union at the bargaining table, a regional National Labor Relations Board director said Thursday that the company is a joint employer of some of the thousands of contractor delivery drivers who deliver its packages.

The e-commerce giant has previously argued that it should not be responsible for alleged union busting or required to bargain with driver unions, because the drivers who ferry packages to consumers’ doors in Amazon-branded vans work for third-party contractors called Delivery Service Partners, or DSPs.

Thursday’s determination suggests Amazon is wrong, finding that it failed to bargain in good faith after delivery drivers in Palmdale, California, voted to unionize in 2023, a first for the company’s delivery drivers. The regional NLRB director also found that Amazon had illegally targeted drivers in Palmdale with termination, threatened workers, and held unlawful captive audience meetings, according to labor board spokesperson Kayla Blado.

The Palmdale drivers worked for a DSP called Battle-Tested Strategies, which Amazon terminated as a contractor after its management voluntarily recognized the union. If Amazon, the DSP and the delivery drivers fail to reach a settlement agreement in California, the board said it will issue a complaint and schedule a hearing before an administrative law judge. Thursday’s determination by the NLRB only applies to the drivers in Palmdale in regard to their union campaign, and won’t have an immediate impact on the legal standing of Amazon drivers writ large.

The Teamsters union, which represents thousands of delivery drivers for companies such as UPS and DHL, has been working to unionize Amazon workers since 2021. Earlier this year, it announced a formal partnership with the Amazon Labor Union, which is organizing Amazon warehouse workers in places including New York and Kentucky.

Teamsters president Sean O’Brien called Thursday’s NLRB decision a “monumental determination that makes clear Amazon has a legal obligation to bargain with its drivers over their working conditions,” in an emailed statement.

Amazon said the union is misrepresenting the situation. Amazon spokesperson Eileen Hards in an email statement said that the NLRB had notified the company that “most of the Teamsters’ more significant claims” in Palmdale had been dismissed. “The regional office has indicated that it thinks some of the remaining allegations should be decided by an administrative law judge,” Hards said. “As we have said all along, there is no merit to the Teamsters’ claims.”

The outcome of November’s presidential election could change the implications of Thursday’s findings for Amazon if the new administration alters the NLRB’s overall strategy. Teamsters’ national leadership have met with leaders from, and made donations to, both parties, but have not endorsed a candidate.