Amazon has warned it could close more than a dozen New York City warehouses and move thousands of workers out of the five boroughs if a labor bill backed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani becomes law, according to an exclusive report Friday in the New York Post. Industry experts told the Post the e-commerce giant is likely to follow through — a standoff that could put as many as 7,000 jobs on the line in the nation's largest city.
The fight centers on the Delivery Protection Act, a proposal that would force Amazon to directly hire more than 5,000 delivery workers across New York City who are currently employed by roughly 40 third-party contractors. Supporters of the measure, including Mayor Mamdani, argue it would raise pay and strengthen safety protections for delivery workers at Amazon and other major delivery firms such as FedEx and DoorDash.
Amazon's Ultimatum
Amazon has made no secret of its opposition to the legislation. The company told the Post the bill could force it to dismantle its delivery network inside the five boroughs — closing more than a dozen last-mile facilities and shedding thousands of jobs across the city.
The stakes go well beyond the 5,000 delivery positions. According to experts cited by the Post, Amazon could also shut all 15 of its last-mile warehouses in the city, putting another roughly 2,000 warehouse workers who staff those facilities out of a job.
The central dispute is Amazon's business model itself. The company does not directly employ its delivery drivers anywhere else in the United States, and it has a long record of fiercely resisting efforts to force a change in that model, both at home and abroad. Agreeing to direct employment in New York — the country's biggest market — could set a precedent Amazon is unwilling to accept.
The Quebec Precedent
Analysts say the company's warning should not be dismissed as a bluff, and they point to Canada as the evidence. Early last year, Amazon closed seven warehouses near Montreal amid a labor dispute involving one of its last-mile facilities in the town of Laval, where about 300 workers had organized under the union Confédération des syndicats nationaux.
By March 2025, roughly 1,900 warehouse positions across the seven facilities were gone, along with about 2,800 delivery contractors who served them.
"Amazon will retaliate, because it has to send a firm message to the rest of the country that 'If you mess with us, this is what will happen,'" Marc Wulfraat, president and founder of logistics consultancy MWPVL International, told the Post. "When you look at Amazon's global operations, they close buildings left, right and center when there is union activity."
What This Means
The standoff has turned New York into the latest battleground in Amazon's long-running war with labor organizers. For supporters of the bill, the Delivery Protection Act is a straightforward matter of worker protection: thousands of delivery workers risking injury on congested city streets deserve direct employment, better pay, and real safety standards.
For Amazon, the equation is equally stark. Conceding in New York could embolden similar legislation in other cities and states — a domino effect the company has spent years and billions of dollars trying to prevent. That is precisely why experts believe the threat to leave is real.
The dispute also lands at a delicate political moment. Mamdani, the city's progressive mayor, has made worker protections a centerpiece of his administration. A high-profile clash with Amazon — one of the world's most powerful companies — is a fight he is unlikely to back down from easily, either.
What Happens Next
The Delivery Protection Act has not yet become law, and both sides are still maneuvering. Amazon's warning appears designed to pressure lawmakers before a vote — and to send a signal to other cities watching from the sidelines.
If the bill is enacted, the next move will be Amazon's: test the company's resolve and see whether its warning was a negotiating tactic or a promise. If the legislation stalls or dies, the company will have won without lifting a finger.
Either way, New York City residents could feel the consequences. Losing Amazon's last-mile network would slow deliveries across the five boroughs and reshape the city's logistics economy — a reminder that the fight over how packages get to your door is, at its heart, a fight about who does the work and who pays for it.
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