Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) employees in Minnesota are reportedly planning a protest on Prime Day, one of the busiest times of the year.
The Company’s workers announced that, on July 15, they will cease to work for six hours as soon as this spectacular, Black Friday impersonating, event begins. This is to protest the workers’ allegation that the productivity quotas are too intense and that more temporary workers are offered full-time offers. Presumably, the minimum wage raise to USD 15 was not enough to meet expectations.
Protesting Amazon is not a new activity or trend. Many of Amazon’s employees have articulated their frustrations with the Company in the past. There was an uproar in Europe where labor unions hold greater power than present-day American labor unions. Prime Day 2018 was met with major opposition from workers as a strike was supported by European workers in Spain, Poland, Germany, Italy and France.
At the Minnesota facility, the workers, many of which are Muslim immigrants from East Africa, have previously fought Amazon to respect their religion. The protest pushed for lesser working quotas during Ramadan and time for prayers. These demands were met but the working conditions are still not deemed to be adequate.
Reportedly, some of Amazon’s white collar-engineers will join the fight and fly to Minnesota to join the protest.
Abdirahman Muse, the Executive Director of the Awood Center, a group that advocates for East African workers, said that these workers have been bemoaning conditions for almost 18 months.
“Instead of real progress on issues like safe and reliable jobs, respecting and promoting East African workers and addressing issues like climate change, they’ve been facing retaliation in the workplace,” he said. “In order to show that they won’t wait around any longer in the face of these injustices, workers decided to go on strike on Prime Day to show they are serious about achieving a voice on the job to win the things families in Minnesota and across the country deserve.”
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