‘You’re Gonna Arrest Me for What?!’: Man Fired by Amazon After Starting Union Arrested With Two Employees Outside Warehouse
A former Amazon worker who was fired while attempting to unionize a company warehouse was arrested in New York City for trespassing at the facility Wednesday.
Christian Smalls made news in 2020 after he was fired from a mid-level management position at a facility in Staten Island, and filed a lawsuit after alleging the warehouse was unsafe.
On Wednesday, Smalls was outside the warehouse visiting with employees in a designated visitors area when he was approached by members of management who were accompanied by security officers and police. Smalls had delivered free food to the workers.
He was informed that he was trespassing, and asked to leave the company property. After a few minutes of back-and-forth with management and the officers, Smalls was handcuffed.
Status Coup News obtained the exclusive footage and posted it on Twitter Thursday.
EXCLUSIVE FOOTAGE: @amazon whistleblower Christian Smalls-who was fired in 2020 for organizing for COVID safety and is now leading @amazonlabor union campaign for JFK8 Staten Island-surrounded by NYC cops and arrested for trespassing despite offering to leave premises. pic.twitter.com/67SEmoC8be
— Status Coup News (@StatusCoup) February 24, 2022
“You’re gonna arrest me for what?!” Smalls can be heard asking the officers.
Bloomberg reported Smalls was arrested on charges of trespassing, resisting arrest and obstructing governmental administration.
Two Amazon employees Smalls was visiting, Brett Daniels and Jason Anthony, were also arrested.
CNN reported Smalls was let go from Amazon after he organized a pro-union protest, while Amazon argued he was fired for showing up to the protest while contagious with Covid.
Regarding Smalls’ lawsuit, CNN noted,
The complaint claims that after a colleague tested positive for the virus, Smalls confronted his supervisors, who allegedly declined to issue a quarantine order for those who had come into contact with the infected employee. The facility’s managers also allegedly ignored guidance from state and federal public health officials, failed to provide workers with protective equipment or establish social distancing guidelines in response to Smalls’ expressions of alarm.
Smalls currently heads the Amazon Labor Union, which is still attempting to unionize the Staten Island warehouse.
He was out of jail a few hours after the arrest, tweeting he was “free” and would not waver in his attempt to unionize the facility.
Amazon has spent two decades busting attempts by its employees to unionize.
