• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Retail

Amazon Warehouse Workers Plan Strike During Prime Day 2019

By
Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Former Contributing Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Former Contributing Writer
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 8, 2019, 12:17 PM ET

Amazon’s Prime Day is one of its busiest times of the year. And warehouse workers in Minnesota are hoping the spectacle surrounding that day will also shine a spotlight on their issues with the retail giant.

Workers plan to strike for six hours on July 15, the first half of Prime Day 2019, at the fulfillment center in Shakopee, Minn. It’s just one of over 100 warehouses, but it could be a microcosm of larger employee unrest. This is the first time Amazon workers have walked off the job on a notable sale day.

Among the issues being protested is a failure on Amazon’s part to convert more temps to full time employees and production quotas, that organizers say have created safety issues for workers.

Amazon, in a statement to Fortune, called the allegations “baseless.”

“The fact is Amazon offers already what this outside organization is asking for,” the company said. “We provide great employment opportunities with excellent pay – ranging from $16.25-$20.80 an hour, and comprehensive benefits including health care, up to 20 weeks parental leave, paid education, promotional opportunities, and more. We encourage anyone to compare our pay, benefits, and workplace to other retailers and major employers in the Shakopee community and across the country.”

The company added that 90% of Amazon associates at the Shakopee fulfillment center are full time employees. And over 100 temporary workers have converted to full-time status so far this year. Productivity metrics, it says, haven’t changed for over seven months, with the few employees who fail to meet them receiving coaching to help them improve.

Amazon has faced work actions on Prime Day before. In 2018, a group called Amazon En Lucha held a labor action on Prime Day, saying it hoped to gather wider support among employees in Amazon’s other European warehouses. The striking employees were protesting an increase in hours and the elimination of bonuses, among other things.

Prime Day 2019 will be a two-day event running July 15-16. The company says this will be its biggest yet, with over 1 million deals globally.

More must-read stories from Fortune:

—The fall and rise of VR: The struggle to make virtual reality get real

—Microsoft is pressing delete on customers’ digital bookshelves

—Jony Ive’s departure means big changes are coming to Apple

—As workplace burnout gets more attention, could more tech be the answer?

—Listen to our new audio briefing, Fortune 500 Daily

Catch up with Data Sheet, Fortune‘s daily digest on the business of tech.

About the Author
By Chris MorrisFormer Contributing Writer

Chris Morris is a former contributing writer at Fortune, covering everything from general business news to the video game and theme park industries.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Retail

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
Fortune Secondary Logo
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Retail

Two restaurant workers wearing black stand in front of a silver "Flippy" fry station.
AIAutomation
Meet your new robot fry cooks: Inside the $28 billion race to disrupt White Castle and Jack in the Box
By Sasha RogelbergFebruary 26, 2026
12 hours ago
Customers in the electronics section at Walmart on Black Friday in Columbus, Ohio, US, on Friday, Nov. 28, 2025. Americans are planning to spend more this holiday season than last year, according to credit reporting firm TransUnion. Photographer: Brian Kaiser/Bloomberg via Getty Images
C-SuiteLeadership
McKinsey studied 61 growth companies that outperformed their peers through COVID, inflation, and labor shocks. Here’s what they all had in common
By Geoff ColvinFebruary 26, 2026
20 hours ago
The Home Depot storefront
InvestingHome Depot
Home Depot CEO flags a disconcerting lack of faith in the American economy: ‘Our customers are telling us that they’re not investing’
By Jacqueline MunisFebruary 25, 2026
2 days ago
CommentaryCulture
Gen Z’s enthusiasm for all things touchable is resurrecting the analog economy—and costing parents
By Luba KassovaFebruary 24, 2026
2 days ago
A FedEx employee pushes a dolly with several boxes on it down a street
LawFedEx
FedEx is the first major company to sue for a full tariff refund after Supreme Court leaves payback open-ended
By Jacqueline MunisFebruary 24, 2026
2 days ago
Law
Hoping for a tariff refund? Trump officials say they are waiting for lower courts to provide instructions. ‘They created the situation’
By Jason MaFebruary 22, 2026
4 days ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Innovation
An MIT roboticist who cofounded bankrupt robot vacuum maker iRobot says Elon Musk’s vision of humanoid robot assistants is ‘pure fantasy thinking’
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezFebruary 25, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Jeff Bezos says being lazy, not working hard, is the root of anxiety: ‘The stress goes away the second I take that first step’
By Sydney LakeFebruary 25, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
AI
Jamie Dimon says society should start preparing for AI job displacement: ‘Now’s the time to start thinking about’ it
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezFebruary 25, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Ex–presidential candidate Andrew Yang warns that millions of white-collar workers will lose their jobs within 18 months: ‘The AI jobpocalypse is here’
By Preston ForeFebruary 25, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Personal Finance
'Trump Accounts' means kids can have $270,000 saved by age 18.  Larry Fink says that's twice as much as most adults have now
By Catherina GioinoFebruary 25, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Gen Z Olympic champion Eileen Gu says she rewires her brain daily to be more successful—and multimillionaire founder Arianna Huffington says it really does work
By Orianna Rosa RoyleFebruary 25, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.