Making Amazon pay: organizing Amazon workers must be synonymous with the fight against oligarchy and income inequality

Rand Wilson and Peter Olney

Chapter 11 in Unpacking Global Amazon, 2026, pp 286-298 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: The co-authors, long-time union organizers, survey the landscape of labor organizing and activism around Amazon early in the new Trump administration. They advocate for making connections to broader struggles against growing oligarchy and income inequality. Hundreds of young socialists have taken jobs at Amazon to chart the workplace and identify worker leaders, responding to calls to “salt” the company. Several unions have devoted considerable resources to organizing Amazon workers, especially the Teamsters at warehouses and with drivers. Independent networks supporting unionization have also arisen, although like the Amazon Labor Union, many have now joined the Teamsters fold. The authors also explore activism on the public policy and community fronts by the Athena Coalition of worker centers. Success in organizing at Amazon, they argue, must involve a broad ecumenical approach that enlists multiple unions and community forces to pressure the company to change its business model and respect worker rights.

Keywords: Ecumenical Unionism; Salting; Worker Centers; Labor Movement; MAGA; Labor Organizing; Teamsters; Unions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035380442
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