Can Amazon's "last mile" delivery drivers avoid arbitration?

They're exempt from FAA-required arbitration.
But what about state statutes that require arbitration agreements to be enforced?

The Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) requires courts to enforce arbitration agreements, but there is an exception for "seamen, railroad employees, or any other class of workers engaged in foreign or interstate commerce."

These "last mile" delivery drivers are engaged in interstate commerce because they carry packages that crossed state lines, even though they themselves did not cross state lines. So the FAA won't force them to arbitrate, even if they agreed to.
(Not so for your local pizza delivery driver.)

A few cases:
> Mathis v. Kerr (Oklahoma 06/25/2024) https://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=496528
> Waithaka v. Amazon.com, 966 F.3d 10 (1st Cir 2020)
> Rittman v. Amazon.com, 971 F.3d 904 (9th Cir 2020)

I think state arbitration statutes can still be used to enforce arbitration agreements that the FAA won't enforce.

In each of the above cases the court would have used a state-law arbitration statute, but did not due to unique circumstances.

> Mathis: State trial courts have exclusive jurisdiction over workers compensation retaliation claims.
> Waithaka: Arbitration agreement unenforceable because it prohibited proceeding on a class basis.
> Rittman: Arbitration agreement provided that it had to be governed by the FAA.

 Your results may vary. If you have this issue, consult a good employment lawyer.
(Not me, I'm an arbitrator.)