The National Labour Relations Board (NLRB) in the US has found that Amazon retaliated against two of its employees when the company fired them last year, The New York Times reported.
The two activist employees, Emily Cunningham and Maren Costa, organised the Amazon Employees for Climate Justice group last year to protest Amazon’s links with the oil and gas industry.
Cunningham and Costa also criticized the working conditions of the company’s warehouse workers and raised safety concerns of workers amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
“NLRB confirmed what we’ve known since last year: @Amazon illegally fired our brave coworkers @emahlee and @marencosta for speaking out about major gaps in Amazon’s climate and worker record,” Amazon Employees For Climate Justice said in a tweet.
However, this finding by the board is not a ruling against Amazon. It is part of the board’s ongoing response to a labor complaint against Amazon.
According to a report in The Verge, the board’s finding might put pressure on Amazon to settle the case with the sacked employees.
“Being part of @AMZNforClimate has been one of the biggest joys in my life. When thousands of workers come together, we make BIG CHANGE possible. @marencosta is a sister to me now and I couldn’t have asked for a better person to be in the struggle with. Solidarity,” Cunningham said in a tweet on Monday.
