Trade unions have announced they are preparing a Christmas strike at Amazon. The strike is one in a row of walkouts that have been underway since April 2013 (see consecutive newsletters). A trade union spokesperson said that previous strikes had not affected customers, but that in the face of lack of results in the pay negotiations, this action will. Trade unions said they would hit Amazon where is hurts most, in order to force management to return to the bargaining table in good faith. The unions have organised several short strikes in an attempt to force Amazon to accept a collective agreement on employment conditions similar to deals for the mail order and retail sector, more generous than for the logistics sector. In addition to criticism over pay and working conditions for logistics workers, Amazon has come under fire for a low tax bill. Consumers' faith in the online retailer had fallen on the back of doubts whether it is ‘fair and ethical’.
English: http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/oct/29/amazon-staff-strike-germany
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-10-06/news ...
For more information, please contact the editor Jan Cremers, Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Labour Studies (AIAS) cbn-aias@uva.nl or the communications officer at the ETUI, Mariya Nikolova mnikolova@etui.org. For previous issues of the Collective bargaining newsletter please visit http://www.etui.org/E-Newsletters/Collective-bargaining-newsletter. You may find further information on the ETUI at www.etui.org, and on the AIAS at www.uva-aias.net.