Arbitrator imposes first Amazon union contract in North America on Delta, B.C. workers

Unifor says about 800 Amazon workers at the Delta, B.C. facility are now covered by a binding collective agreement, the first for the retail giant's workforce anywhere in North America. Both the union and Amazon confirm an independent arbitrator imposed the terms of the three-year deal on Friday.

The contract includes wage increases that lift hourly rates to $29 by the end of the term, stronger severance protections, and an extra week of vacation for workers with 10 years of service, according to Unifor. National president Lana Payne didn't hold back: "Amazon told everyone a union contract would never happen, but workers proved them wrong," she said, crediting their "courage" and accusing the company of spending its power and money to deter organizing while "making billions in profits."

Amazon isn't accepting it quietly. Vice-president J. Ofori Agboka said in an online post that the process was "improper, unfair and defies common sense," and warned the company would take its concerns to court if necessary. He also argued that union dues mean workers "could actually take home less money than they did before," and that associates were never given a vote on the deal — something he called an "unfortunate pattern" at the British Columbia Labour Relations Board.

The fight has been building for over a year. Delta workers were certified to unionize on July 14, 2025, and B.C.'s Labour Relations Board ruled in August in favour of using binding arbitration to settle the dispute, despite Amazon opposing the move. Payne said the company "fought every decision and tried to rewrite reality at every step but they have failed."

Amazon is pushing the opposite view of how a workplace should run. Agboka said the best workplaces are ones "where associates have direct input and we work together to make progress quickly, and where nobody should have to pay dues or go through a third party to be heard." Whether a court agrees with him is now the next front.