Some Amazon warehouse workers will go on strike for Prime Day 2019

Prime Day isn’t a cause for celebration for the backbone of Amazon, its fulfillment warehouse workers.

Workers at an Amazon warehouse in Shakopee, Minnesota, plan to strike for six hours on Prime Day, July 15, to call for job security and eased productivity quotas. According to a Bloomberg report, the strike isn’t expected to significantly disrupt fulfillment, though it is highlighting Amazon’s treatment of its warehouse workers on one of its biggest shopping days of the year.

One worker told Bloomberg that that is exactly the idea: 

“Amazon is going to be telling one story about itself, which is they can ship a Kindle to your house in one day, isn’t that wonderful,” said William Stolz, one of the Shakopee employees organizing the strike. “We want to take the opportunity to talk about what it takes to make that work happen and put pressure on Amazon to protect us and provide safe, reliable jobs.”

Analysts estimate that Amazon made $1.5 – $2 billion in sales on Prime Day 2018. That number is set to increase, as Prime “Day” is extending from last year’s 36-hour event to a two-day shopping extravaganza this year. Last year, Amazon said that it shipped over 100 million products.

To make that happen, Amazon warehouse workers reportedly have to eschew health and safety standards and basic human needs (like bathroom breaks). Wired reported last year that worker’s rights platform Organise received a “surge” in health and safety complaints from Amazon warehouse employees on Prime Day. Amazon workers are regularly expected to work 12-hour shifts, walk miles through the warehouses every day, and face termination if they don’t make productivity quotas. Amazon routinely refutes the reports of these working conditions. 

Some “white collar” Amazon workers will be joining Shakopee workers in solidarity, and to continue putting pressure on Amazon around greenhouse gas emissions. Members of the group, Amazon Employees for Climate Justice, say their causes are stronger together. In addition to the strike, Amazon employees will rally outside the facility in the afternoon.

The juggernaut has been facing increased pressure to improve conditions in its warehouses. In 2018, Amazon raised its minimum wage for hourly workers to $15 per hour, though other changes to pay incentives were also made. The planned strike will not be the first instance of internal pressure centered around Prime Day, either. European Amazon warehouse workers went on strike during Prime Day 2018 with similar demands. 

The workers in Minnesota, many of whom are East African Muslim immigrants, have also been particularly active. They went on strike in March to demand better working conditions during Ramadan. That led to some changes, such as a break room designated for prayer. But workers have also filed complaints with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging that Amazon and its employment company, Integrity Staffing Solutions, retaliated against employee organizers with termination and docked leave time. Amazon told Bloomberg it had yet to see these complaints.

Prime Day is still set to be a frenzied day of shopping for Amazon customers. But maybe just remember that as you’re adding discounted items to your shopping cart, actual humans in Shakopee are putting them in the boxes.