Black Friday protests in 40 countries threaten Amazon's sales
Black Friday is a big day for Amazon. In the last two years, the e-commerce giant captured the majority of Black Friday sales. This year, it's going to be slightly different. Thousands of Amazon warehouse workers across about 40 countries plan to conduct protests and walkouts demanding better wages and working conditions. "Make Amazon Pay," is the name of the campaign.
Why does this story matter?
Amazon isn't having the best of 2022 so far. The company is in cost-cutting mode and reportedly plans to fire around 10,000 employees. The company's projections for the Christmas shopping season that begins with Black Friday sales aren't that great as well. At a time like this, such a widespread protest will hurt it further. This may also make wage negotiations quite challenging.
Protests are organized by an international coalition of trade unions
The Black Friday protests by Amazon warehouse workers are being coordinated by an international coalition of trade unions with the support of environmental and civil society groups. The campaign is aimed at improving the wages and working conditions of workers amid the ongoing cost of living crisis. Employees in the UK, US, India, Japan, Bangladesh, and Europe will take part in the protests.
Amazon has been accused of unfair labor activities
The relationship between Amazon and its employees has been anything but cordial recently. The company has been accused of unfair labor activities by several employees. Employee activism and union drives have also been on the rise. Earlier this year, in New York, Amazon was forced to recognize a trade union for the first time in the US.
Time for Amazon to negotiate with the workers: Union
Christy Hoffman of UNI Global Union, one of the organizers of the campaign, said, "It's time for the tech giant to cease their awful, unsafe practices immediately, respect the law and negotiate with the workers who want to make their jobs better."
Workers are wary of algorithms determining productivity targets
The concerns of Amazon workers are manifold. Monika di Silvestre of Ver.di, a Berlin-based trade union that is spearheading the collective action in Europe, said that the employees are wary about how their productivity is closely monitored by computers. Algorithms determine their targets. She said that these algorithms don't differentiate between young and old or healthy or unhealthy.
Warehouse workers in the UK demand more wages
In the UK, Amazon workers associated with the GMB union are protesting against overworking and being underpaid. They have planned protests outside several warehouses. They demand a wage increase from £10.50 an hour to £15. They also said that Amazon's practice of linking bonus payments to attendance could be construed as an unlawful inducement to not strike.
There will be protests outside Jeff Bezos' condo
In the US, the protest will take place in over 10 cities, including an apartment block on 5th avenue, New York, where former CEO Jeff Bezos has a condo. There will be multiple rallies in India as well as in Japan, where workers will protest outside Amazon's headquarters in Tokyo. In Bangladesh, employees will conduct marches in Dhaka and Chittagong.
Protests are also against Amazon's climate and social footprint
The protests against Amazon aren't limited to financial reasons. In Dublin, people will gather outside Amazon's offices to protest against two new planned data centers in the city. In South Africa, people will protest against Amazon's new offices in Cape Town, which are being developed on land considered sacred by indigenous people.
