Amazon Warehouse Closure Threatens 1, 900 Canadian Jobs

About 1,900 jobs would be wiped off in a planned Amazon Warehouse closure in Canada in the next two months

The company has said it would be closing all its 7 warehouses in Quebec over the next two months and this would come with 1,700 permanent employees being laid off, as well as another 250 temporary workers.

The Eagle reports that the company has subsisting issues bordering on amongst others, workers unionation, which it had been opposed to.

ITs opposition to workers’ unionisation at its warehouse in Laval, Quebec suffered a setback last October when a labour tribunal dismissed its case.

Amazon had criticized the procedure of workers signing union cards instead of voting in a secret ballot, but in a decision, administrative judge Irene Zaikoff rejected Amazon’s request that the union certification be revoked.

Amazon spokesperson Barbara Agrait was to say later in a statement: “While we’re disappointed by the tribunal’s decision, we’ll continue to pursue our case.

“As we’ve said from the beginning, card check auto-certification does not allow for employees to have their voices heard.”

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The Amazon warehouse closure, it has said would be over the next two months in seven operation sites, one fulfillment centre, two sorting centres, three delivery stations and one AMXL (extra large) delivery station that is co-located with a sorting centre, has nothing to do with last year’s ruling.

Barbara Agrait, a spokesperson with Amazon, stated: “[The seasonal workers will be] compensated until the last day of their contracts,” she said.

Agrait adds the impacted employees are set to receive packages including up to 14 weeks of pay once facilities close, as well as transitional benefits, “like job placement resources.”