German Trade Union Calls for Amazon-Employee Black-Friday Strike Over Coronavirus
26 November 2020 - 9:12PM
Dow Jones News
By Cecilia Butini
German trade union Verdi said Thursday that it is calling for
Amazon.com Inc's employees at two logistics centers in the country
to strike during Black Friday sales over riskier working conditions
prompted by the coronavirus.
The union said the strike started Thursday during the night
shift at the U.S. e-commerce company's logistics facilities FRA1
and FRA3 in Bad Hersfeld, central Germany. It will continue until
Saturday, Nov. 28, it said.
Amazon has hired additional workers at the facilities to cope
with increased order volume due to the coming holiday season and
the coronavirus pandemic, according to Verdi. That is increasing
the risk for employees to get infected, the union said in a
statement.
"Many employees don't feel sufficiently protected and valued in
their work," Verdi strike leader Mechthild Middeke said.
The union is calling for better rules around health and safety
and for an employee bonus which takes into account increased
company profits and a heightened workload.
A representative for Amazon in Germany said in an emailed
statement that the company has put in place more than 150 different
safety measures to keep employees safe across the world and added
that German health authorities have agreed that the company
provides strong safety protections to employees.
Amazon workers in Germany had previously gone on strike over
working conditions and wages on Prime Day in October and over
coronavirus infections at company sites in June.
Write to Cecilia Butini at cecilia.butini@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 26, 2020 04:57 ET (09:57 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024