On one of the busiest shopping days of the year, over 500 Amazon employees at the company’s Italy distribution hub are planning to go on strike, reports Reuters. On Black Friday, Amazon workers at the company’s main distribution hub will be striking for the first time after they failed to negotiate bonuses with the company.
In addition to bonuses, the workers are also wanting pay raises to compensate for the mandatory night sifts, overtime, or six days in a row work days. Workers are making these demands to keep up with the company’s ongoing requirements.
Starting from Black Friday, workers will also be refusing overtime during holiday season until December 31st. Typically, holiday season is the busiest time of the year for companies, especially Amazon.
The Italy Piacenza hub has about 1,600 permanent employees, and was one of the first hub’s to be built after Amazon launched a local site there in 2010. Amazon, in a statement to Reuters, said that they were focused on getting deliveries to customers on time for Black Friday shopping and for the rest of the holidays. They also noted that workers’ salaries were among some of the highest in the logistics sector, including benefits like private health insurance and subsidies for training programs.
