New York City’s incoming Democratic-Socialist congresswoman, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, is “outraged” over Amazon’s announcement it plans to create a new headquarters in her city, with an estimated 25,000 new jobs.
Amazon’s official announcement is expected today.
Ocasio-Cortez unleashed a tweet storm Monday night that accused the company of not offering jobs with high enough pay.
“We’ve been getting calls and outreach from Queens residents all day about this,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote. “The community’s response? Outrage.”
The Wall Street Journal broke the story Monday, and while no state tax benefits have been announced thus far, Ocasio-Cortez suspects the company will reap a whirlwind: “Amazon is a billion-dollar company. The idea that it will receive hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks at a time when our subway is crumbling and our communities need MORE investment, not less, is extremely concerning to residents here.”
Ocasio-Cortez may be referring to an existing New York State program called Relocation and Employment Assistance Program (REAP), which “offers employees a $3,000 credit per employee for 12 years if they move their business into the outer boroughs,” according to the Gotham real estate site, 6sqft. The program predates Amazon’s announcement it was in the market for new office locations.
The Journal reports Amazon is planning to split its new offices between Long Island City, a Queens neighborhood across the East River from Manhattan, and Crystal City in Northern Virginia.
Ocasio-Cortez also attacked Amazon for not promising to hire from the local community, guaranteed high pay, or a unionized workforce:
Ocasio-Cortez even went after the very idea of Amazon creating a headquarters in New York City, writing that the inevitable “displacement” will hurt the Queens neighborhood.
The former bartender turned politician says Amazon’s proposal “should be met with skepticism”:
Ocasio-Cortez says this isn’t about picking a fight with Amazon.
“Lastly, this isn’t just about one company or one headquarters,” she tweeted. “It’s about cost of living, corps paying their fair share, etc. It’s not about picking a fight, either. I was elected to advocate for our community’s interests - & they‘ve requested, clearly, to voice their concerns.”
Ocasio-Cortez kept up the drumbeat Tuesday morning, highlighting city lawmakers who’ve already come out against the city jobs infusion:
The specific details of Amazon’s plans won’t be known until its announcement later today.