To mark the “black Friday” sale, the Amazon workers on November 23, went on strike and protesting against the e-commerce giant. Some of them walked off their job to highlight the protest and that that what they said were low pay and unsafe working conditions.
To protest, the workers come out together across the continents- Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and Spain.
In a statement, general secretary of GMB Tim Roache said, “The conditions our members at Amazon are working under are frankly ‘inhuman’,” adding, “They are breaking bones, being knocked unconscious and being taken away in ambulances.”
Amazon, holding its words to a request to comment, told the Guardian: “Our European Fulfillment Network is fully operational and we continue to focus on delivering for our customers and reports to the contrary are simply wrong.”
According to Reuters, workers who earns a salary of $12 an hour, went on strike in Germany with more than an average of 600 workers. In Spain, The Associated Press was told by an employee that the strike is timed for “one of the days that Amazon has most sales”.
Eduardo Hernandez told AP, “These are days when we can hurt more and make ourselves be heard because the company has not listened to us.”
The last time workers walked out was in May this year, when the workers went on a strike during the Amazon’s annual prime day sales event near Madrid.
To defend their workforce, a statement to Mashable stated: “Amazon has invested over 27 billion euros and created over 75,000 permanent jobs across Europe since 2010,” further adding, “These are good jobs with highly competitive pay, full benefits, and innovative training programs like Career Choice that pre-pays 95% of tuition for associates. We provide safe and positive working conditions, and encourage anyone to come see for themselves by taking a tour at one of our fulfillment centers.”
Through some analysts, the Amazon has produced an additional of $2 billion of revenue for European retailers. The protest aimed to force the online organization platform to make concessions to it workforce and disrupting spending spree.