Black Friday: Amazon workers to strike on one of busiest retail days of the year
Amazon workers in more than 30 countries, including the UK and US, will strike this Black Friday in a protest against the labour practices of the tech giant.
The strike, coordinated by the Make Amazon Pay campaign, is the fourth consecutive year of organised action. Protests will also take place in major cities in dozens more countries.
Workers taking part in the action are striking for better workers’ rights as well as making sure Amazon “pays its fair share of taxes and commits to real environmental sustainability”, according to the UNI Global Union.
“This day of action grows every year because the movement to hold Amazon accountable keeps getting bigger and stronger. Workers know that it doesn’t matter what country you’re in or what your job title is, we are all united in the fight for higher wages, an end to unreasonable quotas, and a voice on the job,” said Christy Hoffman, general secretary of UNI Global Union.
“That’s what workers in Coventry are striking for, and that is why workers around the world are standing up to Make Amazon Pay,” she added.
Amazon workers in Coventry have similarly been striking since January 2023 to protest low pay, working conditions and a lack of union recognition.
Earlier this year, workers at the warehouse rejected the right to collective bargaining at the online giant by a majority of just 29 votes.
Last year’s Black Friday was the biggest retail day of the year, according to Nationwide.
Amanda Gearing, GMB Senior Organiser, said that “here in the UK, Amazon represents everything that is broken about our economy.”
“This Black Friday, Amazon workers across the world are building a movement for change.
“Insecure work, poverty wages and often unsafe working conditions; GMB will not let these shape the world of work for the next decade,” Gearing added.
Over half of Amazon employees report adverse health effects, and 57 per cent cite deteriorating mental health due to “Amazon’s intrusive monitoring”, according to a 2023 UNI Global Union survey.
An Amazon spokesperson said: “This online poll was financed and managed by union groups perpetuating false information to satisfy their own narratives. The outcome is loaded, statistically insignificant and contradicts what our own employees tell us directly. In our most recent internal survey – conducted randomly and anonymously – nearly 9 out of 10 of our colleagues say they feel safe at work and that their managers are doing all they can to ensure they’re safe.”
Varsha Gandikota-Nellutla, co-General Coordinator of the Progressive International, said: “From the warehouses in Coventry to the factories of Dhaka, this Global Day of Action is more than a protest. It is a worldwide declaration that this age of abuse must end.”
“Amazon’s globe-spanning empire, which exploits workers, our communities and our planet, now faces a growing globe-spanning movement to Make Amazon Pay,” Gandikota-Nellutla added.
An Amazon UK spokesperson said: “These groups represent a variety of interests, and while we’re always listening and looking at ways to improve, we remain proud of the competitive pay, comprehensive benefits, and engaging, safe work experience we provide our teams.”
“We’ve cooperated throughout [the investigation by Bernie Sanders], including providing thousands of pages of information and documents.
“But unfortunately, this report (which was not shared with us before publishing) ignores our progress and paints a one-sided, false narrative using only a fraction of the information we’ve provided.
“It draws sweeping and inaccurate conclusions based on unverified anecdotes, and it misrepresents documents that are several years old and contained factual errors and faulty analysis.”