Following the strikes that took place in September this year, Amazon workers in Germany decided to call for strikes again last week.
They have the same demands as last time: better work conditions and wages (including benefits as paid vacation, better paid hours for night shifts and Christmas bonuses). Keep reading to learn more about what this might mean for Amazon.de this Christmas season.
As of this writing, two fulfillment centers are affected by the strikes: Leipzig and Bad Hersfeld. The strike might also trigger other protests during the busiest period of the year. This may end up having a major impact on both customers and FBA sellers.
It remains to be seen how these tensions will affect Amazon over the long run. Right now there is still plenty of time to order and receive packages before Christmas but I wonder if it’s possible for the workers to put more pressure on Amazon just before Christmas.
Although these labor issues are coming to a head during busiest period of the year and it triggers more questions on how labor laws are respected in Germany, do we really think that Amazon will be intimidated?
I believe that these strikes will cause negative publicity for Amazon, but that’s about it. Remember that Amazon has 9 distribution centers in Germany and fewer than 800 out of 9000 employees walked off their jobs and protested. This could easily could be characterized as an isolated event.
Will this draw the attention of US Amazon workers and could this lead to strikes in the US? I don’t think so. Labor laws in Germany are different and it’s difficult to believe that workers in the US will be following this story closely enough and that they will be able to organize into a large enough group to affect Amazon in the US.
Still, Amazon allegedly wants to make some changes and in an interview in Die Welt journal, a representative of Logistics Department at Amazon, Dave Clark , said Amazon will try to establish “direct relations with our employees, via works councils and employee forums.” Amazon’s goal is to avoid “getting blackmailed by someone threatening to ruin Christmas for children”.
In conclusion it currently appears that these strikes are simply causing Amazon some negative publicity and that they are not causing problems for Amazon’s shipping operations. However, there are two things to take into consideration:
1. How will Amazon deal with prospects of more strikes in the near future? Will they be isolated or will larger groups organize, perhaps affecting an entire Amazon marketplace?
2. Are these strikes part of the reason that Amazon is preparing to open new fulfillment centers in Poland and the Czech Republic? Are these facilities intended to be used as leverage if workers in other European countries consider striking?
What do you think?
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