NYC Mayor Mamdani backs Amazon delivery worker bill, escalating fight with retail giant

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is throwing his support behind controversial legislation that would force Amazon and other delivery giants to directly employ thousands of drivers — escalating a fight with the retail behemoth as it threatens to move its delivery operations outside the five boroughs.Mamdani on Monday backed the Teamsters-supported Delivery Protection Act, which would bar companies from subcontracting core warehouse and delivery work at last-mile facilities and require workers to be directly employed by the facility operator — potentially sending customers’ bills soaring.“Corporations like Amazon build billion-dollar business models by insulating themselves from accountability through a system of exploitative subcontracting,” the mayor said in a statement.He called the bill “common-sense regulation that protects delivery workers, safeguards the communities where these facilities operate and ensures that the corporations benefiting from workers’ labor are responsible for the consequences of their business practices.”However, the legislation would foist an extra $664 per year on New York households to get their goods, according to a study by consultancy AKRF. And Amazon, which works with more than 40 local Delivery Service Partners employing over 5,000 people in New York City, has warned that the legislation could prompt it to move delivery operations outside the city.“We’re committed to creating good jobs, supporting our thousands of employees and local small business partners in New York City and providing fast, reliable delivery for New Yorkers,” Amazon spokeswoman Kelly A.

Nantel told The Post.“But as written, this legislation would directly undermine that commitment — threatening the small businesses that deliver to customers, putting the jobs of more than 5,000 of their employees at risk and forcing us to consider relocating delivery operations outside of the city.”Opponents of the bill planned to mount their own sh...