Strikes on Amazon Italy and UK

1. international

Coinciding with the so-called “Black Friday” for the offers launched by Amazon around the world the day after Thanksgiving in the United States, factory workers in Italy and the United Kingdom began strikes to protest working conditions and salaries.

Italian unions indicated today, Friday, that more than half of the workers at the Amazon factory in Castel San Giovanni (northern Italy), one of the most important factories in the country, participated in the global strike called to coincide with “Black Friday.” (Black Friday).

In the United Kingdom, a thousand workers at the Amazon factory in Coventry (England) also went on strike on Friday.

“Black Friday” is the day of offers that the company launches every year around the world, one day after Thanksgiving in the United States, which represents the start of Christmas shopping and sales multiply several times. It is a normal day at Amazon, which forces the company’s workers to To speed up work rates or work exhausting extra hours to meet all requests. For this reason, a few years ago it became a prime date to have your demands heard before billionaire Jeff Bezos’ company.

On Friday, Italy’s three largest unions, CGIL, CISL and UIL, told local media that participation in the strike at the logistics hub in northern Italy was 60% for permanent employees and 50% for temporary employees.

The strike called by Italian unions, for which there is no consensus regarding its follow-up, coincides with protests and demonstrations against Amazon’s management taking place elsewhere in Europe and the United States under the slogan “Make Amazon Pay.” (“Make Amazon Pay”).

Because of the trabajadores’ organiza- tions, the city’s mayor’s share in the history of this company, for this part, we insist that the media does not affect other clients among the most important jobs for the company to do. the world.

In Italy, the Castel San Giovanni factory employs more than 1,700 workers, although in times of high consumption, such as Christmas, this workforce can be doubled through temporary contracts.

The employees of the e-commerce giant in Italy are demanding a higher salary increase than that proposed by the management, by 3% overall, an increase in food vouchers and greater attention to the well-being and mental health of workers, which they condemn as a context of high pressure and control in their jobs.

In addition to Italy and the United Kingdom, strikes were also carried out at Amazon factories in Germany, and various types of actions were implemented in at least 30 countries around the world.