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Technology · North America

Experts warn NYC delivery bill could put Amazon jobs at risk

The proposed Delivery Protection Act would require Amazon to directly hire more than 5,000 delivery workers now employed by contractors, while experts quoted by the New York Post warn the company could close its 15 New York City last-mile warehouses. The Post says those closures could put about 2,000 additional warehouse jobs at risk, while supporters say the bill would improve pay and safety.

AI-assisted synthesis · Based on 3 outlets' reportingHow it's made

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3 outlets3 regionsLatest reporting 4 min read
Coverage: Too few ratedL 0 · C 1 · R 1 · 1 unrated
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Photo: SounderBruce / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)

What happened

Key facts

  • The proposed Delivery Protection Act would require Amazon to hire directly more than 5,000 delivery workers currently employed by contractors.
  • Industry specialists and delivery-business owners warn Amazon could close its 15 last-mile warehouses in New York City and move operations outside the city.
  • Opponents say relocation could put an additional 2,000 warehouse jobs at risk.
  • The bill was initially introduced by Queens Council Member Tiffany Cabán and has approximately 34 City Council co-sponsors.
  • Mayor Zohran Mamdani supports the bill, while lawmakers led by City Council Speaker Julie Menin have raised concerns about possible job losses.
  • By March 2025, about 1,900 warehouse employees and 2,800 contracted delivery workers had lost their jobs after the Quebec closures.
  • Marc Wulfraat of MWPVL International said Amazon could take a similarly forceful approach in New York; a source familiar with discussions said the bill is likely to advance in some form.
  • Amazon said the Delivery Protection Act would force it to directly hire upwards of 5,000 delivery workers citywide who are currently employed by third-party contractors.

The brief

The proposed Delivery Protection Act would require Amazon to hire directly more than 5,000 delivery workers now employed by contractors, and experts quoted by the New York Post warn the company could close its 15 last-mile warehouses in New York City. The Post says such closures could place about 2,000 additional warehouse jobs at risk.

Those are forecasts, not confirmed company decisions: the supplied reporting describes potential closures and job losses if the measure becomes law. The policy debate centers on who employs delivery workers and what protections they receive. Supporters say the bill would raise pay and improve safety at Amazon and other delivery firms, including FedEx and DoorDash.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani supports the measure. The reporting does not provide specific wage figures or details of the proposed safety requirements. Queens Council Member Tiffany Cabán initially introduced the bill, which has approximately 34 City Council co-sponsors, according to Belaaz.

That account also reports that lawmakers led by City Council Speaker Julie Menin have expressed concern about possible job losses. The reporting therefore identifies a dispute within city politics: supporters back the stated pay and safety aims, while some lawmakers question the employment costs that could follow.

The New York Post’s account emphasizes the forecast of facility closures and layoffs, citing experts who say Amazon could relocate operations. It reports that Basmagy, who employs 150 delivery workers, said the company could use warehouses being developed along the New Jersey Turnpike instead of its city facilities.

The sources do not establish that Amazon has decided to move operations or that those warehouses would replace its New York sites. Belaaz also reports Joe Artus, owner of WGA Transit, saying the measure could threaten his company’s 189 jobs delivering Amazon packages in Harlem. The article says those workers include people formerly incarcerated or experiencing homelessness.

This is a separate concern from the Post’s estimate of 2,000 warehouse jobs: it describes a contractor’s potential exposure, rather than a confirmed reduction in employment. The reports invoke Amazon’s Quebec closures as a precedent, while not establishing that the company would make the same decision in New York.

They say Amazon closed seven warehouses there during a labor dispute in early 2025; by March 2025, around 1,900 warehouse workers and 2,800 contracted delivery workers had lost their jobs. Belaaz attributes the potential New York closures to industry specialists and delivery-business owners, while the Post likewise presents closures and job cuts as expert predictions.

Neither account establishes a final outcome for the proposed city law or a company decision about its facilities.

Why it matters

  • More than 5,000 contracted delivery workers could be affected if Amazon must employ them directly; supporters say the change is intended to improve pay and safety.
  • Experts quoted by the New York Post warn that closing 15 city warehouses could put about 2,000 facility jobs at risk, but the sources describe this as a possibility, not a confirmed plan.
  • WGA Transit owner Joe Artus says the bill could threaten 189 delivery jobs in Harlem, including jobs held by formerly incarcerated people and people experiencing homelessness.
  • Mayor Zohran Mamdani supports the bill, while lawmakers led by City Council Speaker Julie Menin have raised job-loss concerns; the measure has approximately 34 City Council co-sponsors.

What to watch next

  • Whether the City Council advances the Delivery Protection Act, which has approximately 34 co-sponsors.
  • Whether the proposed bill’s direct-hiring requirement becomes law.
  • Whether Mayor Zohran Mamdani and lawmakers led by City Council Speaker Julie Menin resolve their stated differences over the bill’s aims and potential job losses.
  • Whether Amazon makes any decision about its 15 New York City last-mile warehouses or a shift to facilities along the New Jersey Turnpike.

How it's being covered

Coverage analysisShow details
3 source articles · 3 unique outlets
Coverage mix: Too few rated· 1 Center · 1 Right
Where the outlets are based: US/Canada 33% · Asia 33% · Other 34%
Coverage mix
Too few rated
Left
Center
Right
0 outlets
1 outlet
1 outlet
The marker shows coverage balance: each unique outlet counts once. 1 unrated outlet is not included.
Geography
Where the outlets covering this story are based.
3 unique outletsDominant coverage: US/Canada
How we measure coverage

How outlets' accounts compare

3 framing differences · 2 uncorroborated claims · 3 information gaps
Sources broadly agree on the core facts but frame the story differently.Compared across 3 reports whose full text Updat3 used.
Framing / emphasis differences
Sources agree on the facts but emphasise different angles, actors or consequences.
  • The New York Post foregrounds the possibility of Amazon closing warehouses and cutting jobs, while its account also reports supporters’ stated goals of higher pay and improved safety.
  • Belaaz adds the positions of Mayor Zohran Mamdani and lawmakers led by City Council Speaker Julie Menin, as well as the potential effect on WGA Transit workers in Harlem.
  • The New York Post attributes the projected closures and additional warehouse job losses to experts; Belaaz attributes warnings to industry specialists and delivery-business owners.
Updat3: The underlying facts agree; only the emphasis differs.
One-sided or uncorroborated claims
Claims that come from one party or one source family and are not independently corroborated.
  • Joe Artus said the legislation could threaten his company’s 189 delivery jobs in Harlem.
  • Basmagy said Amazon could shift operations to warehouses being developed along the New Jersey Turnpike.
Updat3: Not independently corroborated yet — treat as a claim, not an established fact.
Not established by the reporting
Information the available reporting does not contain or confirm. This is a gap, not a disagreement.
  • The reports do not give the bill’s full text, proposed wage levels, specific safety provisions, or the status of any City Council vote.
  • The reports do not include an Amazon statement directly confirming a plan to close New York facilities or move jobs.
  • The potential closure of 15 warehouses and the related job losses are forecasts attributed to experts, not confirmed Amazon decisions.
Updat3: Updat3 cannot conclude anything about this from the current sources.

Timeline

Developments from this story's sources, dated background we compiled and fact-checked, and our earlier coverage. Each row says which.
  1. The Fair Labor Standards Act, signed on June 25, 1938, established federal minimum-wage and overtime protections for covered employees.
    Background · from our historical context
  2. Amazon’s use of outside delivery companies in New York had a precedent in its Delivery Service Partner program, which the company launched in 2018.
    Background · from our historical context
  3. In 2021, the City Council enacted Local Law 115, establishing workplace protections for app-based restaurant delivery workers, and Local Law 124, directing the city to set a minimum pay rate for that work.
    Background · from our historical context
  4. The minimum-pay requirement took effect on July 12, 2023, after legal challenges by delivery platforms.
    Background · from our historical context

How we got here

Amazon’s use of outside delivery companies in New York had a precedent in its Delivery Service Partner program, which the company launched in 2018. The program recruited independent businesses to operate delivery fleets carrying Amazon packages, rather than making every driver an Amazon employee.

In early 2025, Amazon closed seven warehouses in Quebec amid a labor dispute; by March 2025, about 1,900 Canadian workers and 2,800 delivery contractors had lost jobs connected with those closures, according to the New York Post. New York City had already created rules for some app-based delivery work, but those rules covered a different segment of the industry.

Original sources

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