Amazon workers in Italy went on a 24-hour strike on March 22 in the first such action by the US company’s entire logistics operation in the country, including third-party delivery service providers, Report informs referring to Reuters.
Trade unions estimate Amazon’s delivery systems rely on 40,000 workers in Italy including staff at its logistics arm, which employs most of Amazon’s 9,500 long-term staff in the country.
Italy’s FILT-CGIL, FIT-CISL and Uiltrasporti unions called the 24-hour strike after failing to reach common ground at two meetings in January with Amazon and the collapse of negotiations with employers association Assoespressi, which represents delivery firms.
Marco Odone of Uiltrasporti said protests were widespread across Amazon sites and preliminary estimates found 70 percent to 75 percent of workers did not report to their jobs.
A spokeswoman for Amazon, which has over 40 logistics centers in Italy, said fewer than 10 percent of its employees and around 20 percent of third-party workers had joined the strike.
“We’re not asking for pay rises right now, but for a more humane working schedule,” FIT-CISL Secretary Generale Salvatore Pellecchia said.
Mariangela Marseglia, country manager for Amazon in Italy, said in a letter to customers that the company put workers first, whether its own or contractors, and offered a safe and inclusive work environment, competitive pay as well as benefits.