On Wednesday, Amazon mentioned it was closing all of its warehouse and logistics operations in Quebec, the Canadian province the place unions took maintain at one among its services, and would lay off 1,700 staff.
The closure represents a reversal of Amazon’s latest investments within the province. The corporate opened three supply stations in 2021. and one final yr. It additionally had a small achievement heart in Quebec and two warehouses that sorted packages.
General, the funding quantities to about 2 million sq. toes of operations, in keeping with an estimate by Marc Wolfraat, a Montreal-based warehouse business guide who has long been investigating Amazon’s logistics network.
Amazon mentioned it was closing the seven services to “present the identical nice service and much more financial savings to our clients over the long run,” in keeping with an announcement from Barbara Agrait, an organization spokeswoman. The corporate didn’t say whether or not unions have been an element.
Amazon will proceed to serve clients in Quebec, returning to its pre-2020 working mannequin, when services in neighboring provinces ready packages that have been then transported by third events for supply in Quebec.
Amazon’s first union in Canada consisted of about 230 warehouse staff in Laval, north of Montreal, after they unionized in Could. However the firm challenged the unionization effort in a provincial labor tribunal. It argued that union certification must be revoked as a result of staff signed union playing cards to specific their assist reasonably than vote by secret poll. The tribunal dominated towards Amazon in October, simply earlier than the height vacation procuring season.
Amazon mentioned litigation over the matter is ongoing.
With the shutdown in Quebec, “they’ve made it very clear that we do not need this to unfold,” Mr. Wulfraat mentioned, referring to the unions’ efforts. The corporate has greater than 46,000 company and operational staff in Canada.
François-Philippe Champagne, the federal minister of innovation, mentioned in a post to X for taking his frustrations to the pinnacle of Amazon Canada.
“This isn’t the best way to do enterprise in Canada,” he mentioned.
The Confédération des Syndicats Nationaux, a union representing the employees, mentioned it was knowledgeable of the closing through e mail by one among Amazon’s legal professionals early this morning. Caroline Senneville, the confederation’s president, mentioned in an announcement that the corporate had stifled their union drive because it started three years in the past via actions that included what she known as “covert layoffs.”
“It is a slap within the face for all the employees in Quebec,” she mentioned.
The Montreal metropolitan space has roughly 4.5 million residents, making it bigger than the larger Seattle area. Pulling operations out of a significant inhabitants heart runs counter to what Amazon has touted lately as a central driver of success in its operations: placing extra merchandise nearer to clients to allow quicker supply. Amazon has repeatedly mentioned that this lowers transport prices and drives clients to order extra typically.
Amazon hasn’t deserted direct operations from a significant North American inhabitants heart in years, though it was greater than a dozen years in the past routinely plays hard ball with nations which have tried to gather taxes on on-line gross sales.
Walmart and different retailers have struggled prior to now establishment of logistical support in Quebec, the place roughly two out of each 5 staff are unionized. That is the best fee amongst Canadian provinces, in keeping with government dataand about 4 instances that of the US.
Francois Legault, Quebec’s premier, mentioned Amazon’s transfer was “a private choice by a non-public firm.”
“I can perceive that it should be tough for the 1,700 households concerned,” Mr. Legault instructed reporters at a information convention Wednesday, focusing most of his remarks on the necessity for Quebecers to mobilize and purchase native merchandise in response to President Trump’s tariffs.
Jean Boulet, the province’s labor minister, mentioned staff affected by the warehouse closures would obtain assist from the federal government to seek out new jobs.
