By: Daniella Doria
The effort to unionize Amazon warehouse workers recently made headlines for their victory in Staten Island.
If local democrats have their way, this success will not spread across the country.
A key Democrat strategist for New York politicians linked to Governor Hochul, Global Strategy Group, headed by Jeffrey Pollock, helped prepare Amazon’s anti-union literature, CNBC reported.
As a key Cuomo strategist, Pollock helped Cuomo attempt to combat sexual harassment allegations, according to numerous texts and other messages obtained as part of state Attorney General Letitia James’ devastating investigative report. The state Democratic Party also reported billing expenses of $82,000 to Global during the last half of 2021, according a New York Post report.
“Pollock and his firm have done work for Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, the Democratic Governors’ Association, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and other Washington, DC-based Democratic groups, campaign records reveal. Pollock is also retained by self-described progressives who claim to be pro-union. Former city Comptroller Scott Stringer paid Global $347,000 during his failed bid for mayor, city Campaign Finance Board records show”, writes Carl Campanile and Sam Raskin.
“Hochul’s Democratic primary opponent, Long Island Rep. Tom Suozzi, slammed Hochul for allowing her pollster to aid Amazon’s anti-union war.
“Kathy Hochul purports to support working families but then one of her top political advisors is the leading architect trying to kill efforts by those same working families to unionize at Amazon,” said Suozzi spokesman Jason Elan. “This is typical Hochul hypocrisy and the same Albany two-step that rewards political insiders at the expense of hardworking New Yorkers who are fighting for their right to organize.”
Hochul’s campaign declined to comment, other than to point to the governor’s tweets praising workers at Amazon’s Staten Island warehouse for unionizing on Friday. The vote was 2,654 in favor and 2,131 against unionization, according to National Labor Relations Board officials.
Hochul became Governor of New York in 2021. She took the oath of office on August 24, 2021 after the former Governor, Andrew Cuomo, resigned amid reports of alleged sexual harassment. Hochul is expected to run for office again in 2022. Hochul received her Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the Maxwell School of Syracuse University in 1980 and a Juris Doctor from the Catholic University Columbus School of Law in 1984. Hochul is married to William J. Hochul Jr., a former United States attorney for the Western District of New York and the Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary to Delaware North Companies, a hospitality and gambling company. They have two children.
