UNI Global Union and UNI Europa’s statement on new revelations about Amazon’s spying scheme:
“It is not enough for Amazon to abuse its dominant market power and face antitrust charges by the EU, now they are exporting 19th century American union busting tactics to Europe,” said Christy Hoffman General Secretary of UNI Global Union. “This is a company that is ignoring the law, spying on workers, and using every page of the U.S. union busting playbook to silence workers’ voices. Enough is enough. Now more than ever we need a check on Amazon’s corporate power. It’s time for Amazon to accept collective bargaining and the will of workers rather than see them as existential threat. For years people have been comparing big tech bosses to 19th century robber barons, and now by using the Pinkertons to do his dirty work, Bezos is making that connection even clearer.
“In those countries that have delivered shared prosperity, unions and employers have a close and productive relationship,” said Oliver Roethig Regional Secretary of UNI Europa.“This has guided how European countries operate: people have a say over the decisions that shape their working lives. Amazon is blatantly attempting to undermine that and impose its conflictual labour model. This will not fly.”
“When Amazon attacks working people’s efforts to form and join unions, it is an attack on a society in which people have a chance at a fair share of the wealth they create. Union-busting is a US-import we certainly do not want. We have laws that protect people’s freedom of association, freedom of assembly and privacy rights. The European Union must ensure they are applied to the fullest extent to truly disincentivise this destructive behaviour.”
Representing more than 20 million workers in 150 countries—including 7 million workers in Europe—UNI Global Union and UNI Europa are driven by the responsibility to ensure skills and service jobs are decent jobs and that workers’ rights are protected, including the right of union representation and collective bargaining.
