Group seeks more than a year's salary in compensation for each worker, in addition to moral and punitive damages
A Quebec union has filed a formal complaint against American multinational technology company Amazon after the company announced it is closing seven warehouses in the province.
The e-commerce giant had framed the closures as a strategic move to provide “even more savings to our customers over the long run,” denying any link to recent unionization efforts within the province.
“This is about offering the best service we can to customers in a way that’s efficient and cost-effective,” Amazon spokesperson Barbara Agrait told the Financial Post, in response to inquiries regarding whether the closures were aimed at discouraging union activity.
According to Agrait, the decision to close the Quebec facilities followed "a recent review of our Quebec operations" and was not made lightly. The affected sites include one fulfillment center, two sorting centers, three delivery stations, and a facility known as AMXL, which handles large-item shipments such as televisions and furniture.
However, the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) is not buying Agrait’s explanation, claiming that the closure of the warehouses is the employer’s anti-union tactic. The group has now lodged a complaint against Amazon with Quebec’s Administrative Labour Tribunal, according to a report from The Canadian Press (CP) posted in CTV News.
In the complaint, the group claimed that Amazon is reorganizing its operations to escape its obligations as an employer under the Labour Code, according to the report.
The complaint demands Amazon pay each employee more than a year’s salary in compensation, in addition to moral and punitive damages, according to the report.
“No one takes Amazon at its word when the multinational says that the decision to close seven warehouses and thus lead to 4,700 layoffs has nothing to do with the presence of a union and the possibility that an arbitrator will impose a first collective agreement this year,” said Caroline Senneville, CSN president, in a previous statement.
She claimed that “such a decision is illegal in Quebec”.
François-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s minister of innovation, science and industry, has said that he is against the Amazon closures.
“Spoke to the head of Amazon Canada. I expressed our dismay and frustration after learning in the news that they intend to let go of 1,700 employees and close all seven of their warehouses in Québec,” he said via X back in January.
“This is not the way business is done in Canada.”
Mark Carney – who, in January, officially announced that he was running in the 2025 Liberal Party of Canada leadership election – agreed with Champagne.
“This is not how we do business in Canada. We must build the strongest economy in the G7 for all Canadians where business and workers are partners.”
Earlier, Parks Canada also faced criticism after encouraging workers to buy from Amazon.
Amazon’s announcement of the closure of the warehouses followed the successful unionization of about 240 workers at the DXT4 warehouse in Laval, Quebec, in May 2024.
The CSN had also launched a national campaign to boycott Amazon earlier this month.
“A company that does not respect our laws should not be allowed to do business here. Even less to receive public contracts. Many local businesses have suffered from the upheavals in the retail sector caused by the arrival of Amazon in Quebec.
“More than 4,500 people have lost their jobs. It is time to resist these many affronts and support our local businesses. Let’s stop buying from Amazon and encourage our local businesses,” Senneville had said.
