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Union (Edinburgh)
20 September 2025 | 5:45pm - 8:15pm
Film Synopsis: Union
A group of fulfilment centre workers take the fight to Amazon, becoming the first unionised Amazon workplace in the United States.
On April 1, 2022, a group of workers made history by becoming the first unionised Amazon workplace in the United States. UNION takes us inside this momentous David and Goliath labour struggle in searing cinema vérité. We follow workers at an Amazon fulfilment centre in Staten Island as they tirelessly fight to establish a union, while one of the most powerful, exploitative corporations in the world pulls out every dirty trick to stop them. Formed by Christian Smalls after he was fired for protesting Amazon’s improper safety protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Amazon Labour Union (ALU) was set up with no prior organising experience, no institutional backing, and a grassroots budget raised on GoFundMe. As difficult battles emerge one after another, interpersonal tensions build and the exhaustion of workplace organising runs high – but what seemed impossible lies within reach. This is the story of ALU’s victory against all odds.
CONTENT NOTES: Discussion of death (COVID*), homelessness, gender discrimination, police brutality, racism, murder. Depiction of police brutality/violent arrest.
ACCESS NOTES: Significant pacemaking and storytelling through on-screen text. Primarily bright imagery, with some dull scenes. Occasional overlapping dialogue.
Screening as part of #TOAFF25
PLAY TRAILERBeyond the Screen
At the start of this screening, we’re excited to have an introduction for our Take One Action audience from Amazon labour organiser Chris Smalls, who features in the film.
After the screening, join us for an energising post-screening discussion with Tom Hegarty from Foxglove, an independent non-profit organisation that “fights to make tech fair for everyone”, which is currently challenging Amazon in the courts after an unsuccessful attempt by workers to unionise here in the UK.
We will hear from writer, curator and organiser layla-roxanne hill, who holds elected positions with the National Union of Journalists and the Scottish Trades Union Congress, about local union organising and activism, rooting into the power of collective action and exploring contemporary labour struggles here in Scotland.
This conversation will be moderated by Sam Gonçalves, author of How Does Change Happen? Scenes from the Frontlines of Activism.
Booking Information
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