In today’s news and commentary: Amazon drivers join the Teamsters, UAW files unfair labor charges against Stellantis, and Boeing cuts down on spending in response to the strike.

Yesterday, the Teamsters announced that Amazon delivery drivers working out of a facility in Queens, New York would be joining the union. A majority of the drivers signed authorization cards to join the union, and the workers approached Amazon to request that the company recognize and negotiate with the union. 

Many drivers have joined the union in the hopes of achieving higher wages, more consistent schedules, and improved maintenance of delivery trucks. The drivers, who are nominally employed by outside contractors, are part of Amazon’s delivery service partners (DSPs) program. Their unionization efforts come after two determinations by the NLRB finding that Amazon should be deemed a joint employer of workers at DSPs. Sean O’Brien, the president of the Teamsters, has expressed that “The NLRB made clear that Amazon has a legal obligation to bargain with its drivers and meet them at the negotiating table to improve wages, working conditions, safety standards, and everything in between.”

Also yesterday, the United Auto Workers union announced that it had filed unfair labor practice charges against Stellantis for violating some of the terms of the labor contract reached last fall. The UAW is accusing Stellantis of refusing to disclose information about its plans on product and investment commitments made in the 2023 contract. More specifically, the union has publicly accused Stellantis of trying to move its production of the Dodge Durango out of the U.S. in violation of the contract.

This is not the first time the UAW has clashed with Stellantis over the parties’ 2023 contract agreement. Earlier this year, the union accused the company of delaying its reopening of the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois. While Stellantis pledged to resume the facility’s operations in the 2023 contract, the company has yet to open the plant. In response, more than a dozen local unions have filed grievances demanding the plant’s reopening.

Meanwhile, Boeing has announced a series of cost-cutting measures after more than 30,000 factory workers went on strike last Friday. Facing the financial toll of disrupted operations, Boeing has implemented a variety of spending cuts, such as instituting a hiring freeze, pausing non-critical staff travel, and reducing supplier spending. The company is also contemplating the possibility of temporarily laying off employees, including managers and executives.

It remains unclear how long the strike will last. The company and the union are scheduled to return to the bargaining table today.