The Amazon strike would be the first such in the U.S.
Amazon.com Inc. warehouse workers in Minnesota plan to strike during the online retailer’s summer sales extravaganza, a sign that labor unrest persists even after the company committed to paying all employees at least $15 an hour last year.
"The fact is Amazon offers already what this outside organization is asking for," the company said in an emailed statement. Amazon provides competitive hourly rates ranging from $16.25 to $20.80, with benefits,"and we invite anyone to see for themselves by taking a tour of the facility" in Shakopee, the company added.
As one of the world’s most valuable companies -- led by Jeff Bezos, the world’s wealthiest person -- Amazon has become a symbol of income inequality. Critics say it benefits from tax breaks to build warehouses but pays workers so little that some are forced to seek government assistance for basic needs like food and healthcare. The pledge to pay $15 an hour didn’t happen until the company had weathered attacks from politicians such as presidential hopeful Sen.
In its statement, Amazon said that"on average" 90% of the staff at Shakopee were full-time Amazon employees, and that last week it offered more than 30 temps there such positions. The company said its productivity metrics had not changed since November 2018."We support people who are not performing to the levels expected with dedicated coaching to help them improve," it added.
It’s the latest example of tech employees with very different jobs trying to forge common cause in the hopes their bosses find their demands harder to ignore. The other complaint, filed against Amazon itself, claims the company retaliated against other workers who went on strike in March by deducting hours from their unpaid time-off allotment. The hours they spent striking were counted against the 20 total hours workers can miss each quarter without being fired, according to organizers.
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