Canada IN SHOCK As Amazon CLOSES Warehouses! THIS IS HUGE!

Welcome back. Hundreds of Amazon

employees in Quebec are left to pick up

the pieces following the shuttering of

warehouses across the province. Amazon

Canada says it's stopping operations at

seven of its facilities over the next

two months, which is resulting in more

than 1,700 layoffs. He worked hard to

climb the ranks to supervisor over the

past four years. So, it's hard to find

one stable job and uh yeah, we can we

have to just start over like we have to

we have to start at the beginning.

>> Nobody saw this coming.

>> Well, Adrian, it will no longer be

Amazon drivers showing up at the door.

>> Canada is in absolute disbelief as

Amazon walks out of Quebec, shutting

down every warehouse and leaving a

crater in the province's [music]

economic landscape. Seven hubs gone.

Nearly 2,000 livelihoods erased in one

sweep. A region that once powered

Amazon's growth now left out in the

cold. You don't exit an entire province

unless something deeper is burning

[music] beneath the surface. And believe

me, this is far bigger than layoffs.

Something forced Amazon out. And we're

here to break down the part they're not

saying out loud. Amazon closing all

seven [music] of its warehouses in the

province, laying off all of its 1,700

staff members.

>> Amazon is a private companies. So why do

they do that? How do they do that?

The answer must [music] be asked to to

Amazon.

>> What we are witnessing here goes far

beyond a routine corporate decision.

This marks a structural break in

Canada's logistics framework. Seven

Amazon facilities across Quebec are

scheduled for shutdown within weeks. And

this instantly reshapes how goods move,

how warehouses operate, and who controls

distribution power. Fulfillment hubs,

sorting centers, last [music] mile

stations, and even AMXL large item

processing. All wiped from the

provincial supply chain in one sweeping

shift. When the company expanded four

years ago in Quebec, it touted greater

demand as well as the need for faster

deliveries. Well, soon the closest

fulfillment center will be in Ottawa. In

fact, there will be none east of

Ontario. [music] Adrian,

>> with Quebec's infrastructure removed,

the province now relies heavily on

Ottawa as the nearest distribution

center, shifting economic gravity

westward and redirecting transport flow

through Ontario. This means delivery

routes stretch further. Fuel consumption

increases and logistical influence moves

away from Quebec's borders. A single

corporate exit has the ability to

rearrange freight lanes, transportation

contracts, and regional warehouse

strategy across Eastern Canada.

>> Amazon parcels in Quebec will be handled

by different distributors soon, and

hundreds of workers are left to find

jobs elsewhere. Amazon Canada says it's

shutting down operations [music]

at seven of its warehouses over the next

two months. The corporate Mega Power

says it's reverting back to their old

business model, [music]

using third-party companies for package

deliveries. One union is calling the

move a push against labor rights. One

representative called it a slap in the

face for all Quebec workers, and it's a

move that runs counter to the provisions

of the labor code and one will be taking

a firm stand against. workers felt the

impact first. And the human cost speaks

louder than any spreadsheet or press

release. Nearly 2,000 people arrived

expecting a normal workday and [music]

walked into a corporate earthquake.

Careers built over years suddenly

without direction. Families now forced

to recalculate their future overnight.

Many of these employees climbed from

entry-level roles into supervisors and

specialists through effort, consistency,

and dedication. One announcement swept

through those achievements like a storm,

leaving uncertainty in its wake and

pushing thousands of households into

immediate financial reconsideration.

>> Quebec is home to Amazon's only

unionized workforce in Canada.

>> We did unionize one facility and we were

working very hard to form unions in

other facilities. And Amazon is really

anti-UN.

>> Workers at this delivery station in

Laval successfully joined a union last

May. dissatisfied with what they

described as low wages and inadequate

health and safety measures.

>> This is more than numbers. This is

disruption rippling through kitchens,

bank accounts, and breakfast

conversations across Quebec. A shutdown

of this scale reaches beyond facility

doors and into communities, rental

markets, grocery bills, child care

decisions, even mental health. A stable

income disappears and entire

neighborhoods absorb the shock as

spending drops, savings shrink, and job

searches multiply. The emotional wave

matters as much as the economic one

because it reshapes how people feel

about work, corporate loyalty, and

trust.

>> The company challenged the certification

process, but Quebec's labor tribunal

dismissed the case. For months, the

union has been trying to negotiate a

collective agreement. It's pretty clear.

They're setting down their facility in

Quebec to provide an example and to set

precedent and to send a signal across

North America to all unions who are

attempting to organize in the sector.

>> Our labor market now holds thousands of

skilled workers with warehouse

logistics, robotics, and distribution

experience. This massive job

displacement that pressures job markets,

increases competition, and strains an

economy already fighting to keep

momentum. Some will transition, some

will relocate, but many will struggle to

replace the stability that they once

had. A workforce this large leaves a

void in a corporation and a weight on

the country.

>> And workers at one Amazon facility have

unionized and secured a collective

[music] agreement. And so, you know,

with Amazon's reputation as being quite

an anti-UN employer, uh this is not a

surprising uh outcome as unfortunate as

it is.

>> Most of the families, the communities,

and the workers will have had to move

on. Anti-UN accusations sparked after

the e-commerce giant said in the past

that it doesn't think unions are the

best option for its employees. Now,

here's where things start getting even

more interesting. Because Amazon didn't

just shut down buildings. [music]

They exited the only province where

workers successfully formed a union.

Think about that for a second. Quebec

was the one place in Canada where

[music] employees pushed through

certification, organized, negotiated,

and demanded better conditions. And

shortly after that win, every [music]

warehouse disappeared. That timing

raises eyebrows everywhere, especially

among labor experts watching this

unfold.

>> This is a very powerful U message and it

will send a chill uh across those uh

drives. Quebec's labor minister says the

affected workers are top of mind [music]

and he will ensure the company respects

labor laws as for whether he believes

Amazon's explanation.

>> We will receive the notice of collective

dismissal. We will analyze the

situation. Unions describe this as a

message almost like Amazon placed a

billboard across the industry saying we

prefer places where organizing [music]

remains difficult and whether you agree

or disagree with that interpretation the

[music] effect is the same. Unionized

workers want approval and then saw the

entire structure pulled out from

underneath them. For months,

representatives sat at negotiation

tables pushing for safer workloads,

[music] fair wages, and healthcare

protections that many warehouse

employees said they desperately needed.

Instead of long bargaining rounds,

everything resets and the company shifts

towards [music] subcontracted partners

who operate under different labor

dynamics. Well, in grand scheme of

things, 1,700 people isn't a huge number

in the total employment in Quebec. But

of course, uh, anytime you're losing

jobs, especially something like Amazon,

which could be here for years and years

is a worrying sign. Uh, if Amazon

leaves, is this sending a signal then to

other companies that it's time to leave

as well? and what's the motivation

that's driving Amazon to leave the

province is also going to be a factor uh

that needs to be considered beyond just

the number of uh jobs that are lost.

>> This changes the union movement too.

Quebec is no longer just one victory.

[music]

It becomes a case study, something every

worker in BC, Ontario, Manitoba, and

beyond will analyze carefully. Labor

leaders watch, employers watch,

governments watch because how this plays

out sets [music] the tone for the future

of warehouse organizing across the

country. If Amazon moves work to

contractors instead of direct [music]

employees, union access becomes much

harder and the whole balance of power

inside logistics sectors shift.

>> This might just be let's get out quickly

before we get subjected to uh tariffs

and find that we can't deliver the same

cost effectiveness because there's now

this extra cost that's added in.

>> Now, here's where the story [music]

explodes. Amazon didn't just leave

Quebec. They changed the entire delivery

game in one move. No warehouses, no

fulfillment centers. Yet millions of

packages still need to move. So what's

happening? Amazon [music] is tossing its

entire logistics chain into the hands of

outside carriers, thirdparty fleets,

private contractors, smaller operators

ready to race for a contract once

handled by Amazon itself.

>> It reminds me of Walmart when [music]

they did this in the past as well. Um

there I think there's only been two

unionized Walmarts [music] and they were

both in Quebec and the first time it

happened, Walmart also closed. They

claimed it was for, you know, economic

reasons. They had a business case of why

they were going to close it. I think the

reality of um some of these companies

that are so large [music] and these

multinational organizations is that they

can at any point in time make a business

case [music] to close any store.

>> Think about that shift. The company that

built its empire on owning every step of

delivery just lifted its foot off the

province and handed the steering wheel

to someone else. This means new

companies scramble to fill the gap. New

routes [music] form without planning

time and millions of dollars in delivery

contracts scatter into the market like

wildfire. The flow of money, power, and

control breaks wide open, but only

because a giant stepped back, leaving

[music] chaos where structure once

stood.

>> Uh you can't delay in the same way here

in Canada, especially [music] in Quebec.

And so they've secured a collective

agreement and Amazon's response it looks

like has been to uh move out of the

province or shift to a model that

depends on contractors instead.

>> This is where the shock becomes

nationwide. Move this large stretches

far beyond Quebec and forces every

province to pay attention. Quebec stands

as the first major domino and Canadians

everywhere are asking a serious

question. Who faces impact next? When a

corporation of Amazon size withdraws

from an entire region, the signal it

sends travels faster than trucks ever

could. Executives, governments, and

investors notice [music] instantly

>> that we're not going to see a disruption

to our services, timing, or what we pay.

It's just that those jobs are going to

disappear, and it's going to be left for

the Quebec government or other

industries to figure out how to absorb

those 1700 workers.

>> Economic pressure ripples outward. One

major exit often inspires

reconsideration across other countries,

influencing where they build facilities,

hire workers, or expand operations.

Quebec [music] becomes the test case,

the example other provinces study when

gauging corporate confidence and labor

climate. A full withdrawal reshapes

perception of stability, risk, and

long-term investment potential across

the country. um Quebec courts, they said

that when Walmart closed, [music] it was

a response to the unionization, but the

punishment or the penalty for doing that

often comes years later. So companies,

they calculate these moves out [music]

and you know, if Amazon is closing

because of unionization and if that does

come out in the courts later, [music]

they won't face a penalty for years and

by that time most of the families, the

communities and the workers will have

had to move [music] on.

>> And that is the real weight to this

moment. A complete regional shutdown

pushes business calculations in motion.

It affects future job creation across

provinces [music] and it reshapes how

corporate giants evaluate Canada's

climate. One move triggers an economic

rethink. And this rethink starts with

Canada on the defensive trying to

explain why one of the world's largest

companies just walked out the door.

Amazon believes that robots like these

are the future. At this facility outside

Boston, we saw how they can lift, scan,

and place products. [music] The kind of

work Aaron Martin used to do.

>> It'll suction onto the box uh to pick it

up, and then it'll place it in the tote

where it needs to go.

>> Is this robot doing work that humans

used to do?

>> Um, similar, yes.

>> But there is another factor sitting

beneath all of this. Automation

readiness. Amazon is building a future

on robotics, AIdriven fulfillment,

automated picking systems, [music] and

lightning fast warehouse output. The

countries that win its investment are

the ones where automation is cheap, fast

to deploy, and free of slow approved

bureaucracy. Canada [music] still runs

industrial decisions through paperwork,

through consultation, regulation, while

other nations are building robotics into

production floors at twice the pace.

Will the workforce at Amazon shrink as a

result of automation, robots, AI? What

do you say?

>> Our populations and sizes where people

sit in the footprint is going to vary as

we grow.

>> So, it'll change.

>> It'll vary as we grow.

>> This shutdown isn't just about today's

cost. It may be about tomorrow's

efficiency. If Quebec couldn't support

Amazon's next generation warehouse

model, then pulling out is not just a

retreat, it's realignment. There's also

the cold geography logic that

corporations never ignore. Canada is

huge in land but pretty small in

population. Long delivery distances,

scattered customer density, high fuel

consumption per shipment. When profits

tighten globally, companies don't anchor

in regions where miles outweigh margins.

Quebec became a long route, a high-cost

distribution zone in a business model

built on speed and density. Amazon

didn't shrink because demand fell. It

shrank because distance costs too much

to sustain. Will it add to the cost?

probably not because if Amazon feels

that they can find a more cost-effective

way of doing things, then either that

benefit is either going to go to uh

Amazon shareholders and owners or it's

going to be passed along to the

consumers or probably likely both and

that we're not going to see a disruption

to our services timing or what we pay.

It's just that those jobs are going to

disappear and it's going to be left for

the Quebec government or other

industries to figure out how to absorb

those 1700 workers. And there's another

layer building behind the scenes.

Something many Canadians haven't

connected to this exit yet. With new US

tariffs squeezing crossber trade,

logistics costs are climbing and the

American market suddenly offers easier,

cheaper, more scalable ground for a

corporation like Amazon. The closer you

operate to the US, the less impact

tariffs have and the more profit margins

stay alive. That shift reduces Canada's

leverage and increases the appeal of

moving operations south or operating

remotely instead of investing heavily in

Canadian soil.

>> And I think that the longer that these

tariffs when they do come and stay in

place, the more we're going to see

businesses start to say maybe we need to

shift production to the US.

>> If a corporation can save millions just

by relocating footprint or rerouting

distribution, I mean, what stops them?

Amazon's exit may be the first crack in

a much larger wall. a sign that [music]

Canada risks losing corporate gravity to

US incentives, policy advantage, and

much cheaper operating paths. Economic

decisions follow math, not emotion. And

the math is tilting away from us.

Tariffs are a way to do it, even if it

destroys the economies around them. I

don't think that's the concern of this

White House. Uh, and so it's possible

that Amazon is just the first mover

among many that might be coming in

coming months.

>> And when a giant leaves, the real estate

starts speaking. Millions of square feet

of fulfillment infrastructure now sit

dark. Silent warehouse space is one of

the strongest economic indicators of a

slowdown. Active logistics hubs generate

trucking routes, payroll chains, packing

demand, fuel flow, equipment

maintenance, but dead space generates

nothing.

>> So, Amazon saying [music] this morning

it's going to lay off about 14,000

corporate employees as it restructures

for the AI era, marking the latest move

in a multi-year effort to streamline.

Another consequence unfolds in the

background as well. Thousands of trained

workers suddenly stand outside the gates

of employment. Forklift operators,

inventory coordinators, robotics tech,

delivery supervisors, packaging staff,

route planners, all experienced, all

skilled, all displaced at the same time.

Other companies rarely see a labor shift

of this size. And the question becomes

whether Canada can absorb it fast enough

to prevent an unemployment surge.

Thousands of workers will be uh laid off

uh in warehouses and different delivery

centers, but also uh people that uh

deliver deliver themselves. So, people's

uh uh uh driving the trucks uh will also

be uh laid off. And that's just um it's

outrageous. I have no other words for

it.

>> This shift increases pressure on job

markets. It strains provincial hiring

capacity and intensifies competition for

roles already limited by a slowing

economy. Smaller delivery providers and

logistics firms face a landscape without

a stabilizing anchor. Growth becomes

reactive, uncertain, and fragmented.

Quebec moves forward, yes, but forward

through recovery, [music]

not expansion.

>> No, I mean, we know the anti-UN position

of Amazon, right? Uh there's only one

union in the United States, only one

union here in Canada [music] uh here

with us at the CSN and uh we've had our

labor board uh condemn Amazon for

anti-UN union practices. So this is not

a surprise. The surprise might be that

they're [music] um they're laying off or

they're closing all their activities in

Quebec.

>> And let's be real, shoppers feel this.

With no fulfillment network in Quebec,

products sit farther away, [music]

deliveries stretch longer, and third

party drivers take the place of Amazon's

trained fleet. Packages will still show

up, but slower, less predictable, and

far less prime than Canadians are used

to. This isn't just the loss of

warehouses. It's the loss of

convenience, speed, and reliability.

Amazon leaves, and [music] Canada is

left standing in the aftermath. looking

to rebuild from a blow that shook more

than jobs.

>> [music]