Amazon raises warehouse wages by $1 an hour across Canada amid union dispute

Amazon AMZN-Q is raising hourly wages for thousands of Canadian warehouse workers by $1, amid a labour dispute with a Vancouver union pushing for a historic first collective agreement.

The tech behemoth announced Wednesday that it would boost the average hourly base wage for “operations employees” in Canada from $25.27 an hour to $26.27 an hour, effectively a 4-per-cent year-over-year increase in pay.

Amazon is also giving all its employees, including corporate staff, 10 per cent off online grocery purchases on Amazon.ca starting Oct. 1. In a statement, the company said that the pay increase and grocery discount builds on an existing workplace benefits package, which includes health, vision and dental benefits.

Group of B.C. Amazon workers tries to decertify union on verge of securing historic agreement

The company periodically boosts wages and benefits for warehouse employees, usually ahead of Prime Days in the fall and the holiday season.

Amazon has for years been trying to fend off unionization attempts by workers in multiple jurisdictions across the U.S. and Canada. Poor workplace conditions have been the impetus for union drives, but while Amazon workers in New York and Vancouver have successfully formed unions, no union has managed to secure an official collective agreement.

Unifor, one of the largest private-sector unions in Canada, unionized warehouse workers in Vancouver last July. It said in a statement on Wednesday that Amazon’s wage increase coincides closely with the B.C. labour relations board’s decision last month to force both sides into binding arbitration for a first contract.

“It’s about time Amazon recognizes that if they want to operate in Canada, they will do it while respecting the rights of the very workers they employ. We’re going to keep the pressure on to see workers across Canada benefit from the gains made through collective bargaining,” Unifor national president Lana Payne said.

According to a 2025 report from Amazon, the company employs 46,000 people in Canada, including 8,000 corporate employees. It has 70 operations and logistics sites across the country.

“Every day, our associates across Canada go the extra mile to prepare packages for customer deliveries, and we’re grateful for their dedication,” said Jasmin Begagic, director of Amazon Logistics Canada.

The Seattle tech giant has faced scrutiny over its track record on worker safety and working conditions. In 2023, Amazon was one of 21 employers penalized by Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board for workers’ compensation violations. Specifically, the company failed to file an injury claim involving a worker at one of its Brampton, Ont., fulfillment centres.

Amazon refused to provide wage proposals to B.C. union, resulting in bargaining impasse, mediator says

In October, 2025, Unifor began discussions with Amazon about terms of a collective agreement for the 800 Vancouver warehouse workers, but the process has been fraught with complications. The union alleged that Amazon had “slow walked” the negotiating process by not tabling essential wage proposals in a timely manner.

Then in June, 2026, a mediator appointed by the BC Labour Relations Board sided with the union, saying in a report that the tech giant’s approach to bargaining was effectively “unreasonable” and hindered the process of agreeing to a new collective agreement.

Last month, the provincial labour board ordered binding arbitration to force Amazon into agreeing to terms of a first contract. The company has since appealed that decision.

Amazon workers at YVR2, the unionized warehouse in the Vancouver area, get paid between $18 and $25 per hour, according to Gavin McGarrigle, Unifor’s western regional director. Mr. McGarrigle said that the union proposed wage increases of 4 per cent in 2026, 3.5 per cent in 2027 and 3.5 per cent in 2028 in the first collective agreement, but that Amazon countered with wage increases of 2.5 per cent, 2 per cent and 0 per cent.

The core issue of contention between both sides is the pace of work and injury rates. The union wants to establish clear rules for workload and productivity, but Amazon told the labour board’s mediator in June that it would not negotiate on how hard and fast workers are required to work.

In Wednesday’s statement, Amazon said that the pay boost will bring the annual salary for full-time warehouse workers, working 40 hours a week, to an average of $54,000.