• return2ozma@lemmy.worldOP
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    4 months ago

    ā€œI met Joe Biden,ā€ Smalls said, referring to the 2022 meeting where the president referred to him as ā€œmy kind of trouble.ā€

    Smalls was less enthusiastic. ā€œI met [Biden], I met a lot of these politicians that we thought would be looking out for the working class. And yā€™all ā€” there ainā€™t no cavalry coming. I met with Joe Biden for an hour, and I donā€™t remember the conversation ā€” it was that bad. When I left the White House, I felt empty.ā€

    Six months after that meeting, Amazon secured an $8 billion loan from the federal government. ā€œAnd that just told me right there that, once again, if we donā€™t organize, nothingā€™s going to be given to us. Nobodyā€™s going to be held accountable,ā€ Smalls said.

    ā€œSo itā€™s a must. Itā€™s our duty. Because weā€™re at a point of no return. We have to organize ourselves. Because no amount of money in the world can stop the power of people when we come together.ā€

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldB
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    4 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:


    The leader of Amazonā€™s sole successful unionization effortĀ said on Monday that American workers canā€™t rely on the DemocraticĀ Party toĀ secure better pay and conditions.

    The union leader deliveredĀ his remarks the week afterĀ Amazon founderĀ Jeff Bezos reclaimed his title from Elon Musk as the worldā€™s richest man.

    Smalls rocketed to national prominence in April 2021, when the union effort he helped lead organized a Staten Island Amazon warehouse ā€” where he charged bosses had attempted to cover up COVID-19Ā cases.

    Seth Goldstein, an attorney who represents both the ALUĀ and the labor group Trader Joeā€™s United, told the AP that the companiesā€™ actionsā€™ were Ā ā€œvery frightening.ā€

    In late 2022, several members of the ALUā€™sĀ executive board stepped down in protest over what they portrayed as Smallsā€™ disorganized and authoritarian leadership style.

    The ALU inner circle, dissident membersĀ wrote in a July lawsuit, ā€œrefuse to hold membership meetings, they have unilaterally ā€˜amendedā€™ the constitution to keep themselves in power indefinitely, they have threatened their opponents, most of whom made up the core group which won the Amazon election in the first place, and, most importantly, they refuse all efforts to have a fair, democratic, election.ā€


    The original article contains 779 words, the summary contains 187 words. Saved 76%. Iā€™m a bot and Iā€™m open source!