When Amazon opened a warehouse in Garner, North Carolina, almost five years ago, Mary Hill was excited to snag a full-time job helping her neighbors get essentials during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Now, the 69-year-old hopes to organize her 4,700 co-workers into a union so they can bargain for $30 an hour and longer breaks.
Hill and other organizers won the right to hold a union election this week to determine whether workers at the facility will be represented by the upstart Carolina Amazonians United for Solidarity and Empowerment. The group came together during the pandemic, when Hill and many of her colleagues felt Amazon prioritized shipping products over keeping workers safe.
