NEW YORK CITY, New York: New York City warehouse workers in the Amazon Labor Union (ALU) have voted overwhelmingly to align with the Teamsters as they pursue a contract with the online retail giant.

The ALU members voted 98.3 percent in favor of the affiliation, granting them access to additional resources to bring Amazon to the bargaining table, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced June 18. Amazon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

According to the agreement, the ALU will join the Teamsters as an "autonomous" local union with the same rights and duties as a standard chapter. Approximately 5,500 Amazon warehouse workers in Staten Island will be represented by the newly chartered ALU-International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 1, which will have jurisdiction over Amazon warehouse workers across New York's five boroughs.

"Together, with hard work, courage, and conviction, the Teamsters and ALU will fight fearlessly to ensure Amazon workers secure the good jobs and safe working conditions they deserve in a union contract," said Teamsters General President Sean M. O'Brien.

The ALU is the only labor organization to successfully unionize an Amazon warehouse in the U.S., winning its election at the Staten Island warehouse in 2022. However, the group still needs to secure a union contract due to Amazon's opposition. ALU leaders and the Teamsters agreed to the affiliation earlier this month, but it required ratification by workers.

The Teamsters have been pushing to organize Amazon's non-corporate workforce and see this affiliation as a step closer to their goal. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, created in 1903, has 1.3 million members in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. O'Brien, elected in 2021, emphasized greater organizing at Amazon as part of his platform.

While the ratification is a success for the ALU, the group has faced challenges, including two election losses at other Amazon warehouses and internal strife over organizing strategy. Some organizers have left to form the ALU Democratic Reform Caucus, a dissident group that sued the ALU last year to force an election for new leadership. According to Arthur Schwartz, an attorney representing the dissident group, this election is expected to be held in July outside the warehouse that voted to unionize.