Black Friday Strike Across Europe: It stated that 500 workers, or about 40% of the total, had gone on strike at a Rheinberg warehouse.
Across Europe, on one of the busiest shopping days of the year, Amazon employees staged walkouts on Friday in protest of the American e-commerce giant’s working conditions.
All News About Amazon Workers Strikes During Black Friday Across Europe:
Strikes and protests are planned in over 30 countries from Black Friday, the day after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, when many shops reduce prices to encourage sales, until Monday, according to the “Make Amazon Pay” campaign, which is organized by the UNI Global Union.
Black Friday, which was first popularized by lines forming outside large department shops in the United States, has spread throughout the world and increasingly moved online, thanks in part to Amazon, which is promoting holiday sales this year from November 17 to November 27.
Trade union Verdi estimated that about 2,000 workers went on strike across six Amazon fulfillment centers in Germany, which is Amazon’s second-biggest market by sales last year.
It said 500 workers had gone on strike at a warehouse in Rheinberg, accounting for nearly 40% of the workforce, and around 250 workers had done so at a warehouse in Leipzig, accounting for about 20% there.
Only a small portion of employees were on strike, according to a German Amazon representative, and workers receive fair pay, with an hourly starting wage of more than 14 euros ($15.27). Deliveries of Black Friday orders, according to the spokeswoman, would be dependable and prompt.
In a protracted salary dispute, more than 200 employees at Amazon’s Coventry warehouse in England went on strike on Friday.
A worker at the warehouse, Nick Henderson, stated he was on strike for improved pay and working conditions. The warehouse serves as a logistical hub for Amazon, processing merchandise to ship to other warehouses.
The striking workers were chanting their demand for a pay rise to 15 pounds ($18.69) an hour.
According to a representative for Amazon UK, the minimum beginning salary varies by location and is currently between 11.80 and 13 pounds per hour.
It will increase to 12.30 to 13 pounds per hour starting in April 2024. There won’t be any disruptions because of the walkout, according to Amazon.
In Italy, trade union CGIL said more than 60% of workers at the Amazon warehouse in Castel San Giovanni were on strike, while Amazon said more than 86% of its workers there had come to work and there has been no impact to operations.
The Spanish union CCOO has called for an hour-long walkout on “Cyber Monday” of next week for Amazon delivery and warehousing employees.
According to anti-globalization group Attack, which organized the demonstration, Amazon’s parcel lockers in France—which are used by many consumers to collect orders—were covered in barrier tape and posters. These lockers are found in train stations, supermarket parking lots, and street corners.
Forty lockers were targeted nationwide, according to Attack, which refers to Black Friday as a “celebration of overproduction and overconsumption”. According to Amazon, all of its lockers in France are still open.
Amazon’s popularity has not decreased in Europe despite the rapid ascent of rivals like Shein and Temu. Data.ai reports that in October, Temu and Shein had 51 million and 64 million active users in Europe, respectively, while the Amazon app had 146 million active users in the same month.