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Workers at Bad Hersfeld (Hesse), Leipzig (Saxony), Graben (Bavaria) and Rheinberg (North Rhine Westphalia) decided on Tuesday that they would continue their strike on Wednesday 24 September.

“The workers at Amazon want to send out a signal that they will not abandon their battle for a collective agreement on dignified working conditions and a living wage. The strikes have been successful, and once again workers who had previously not come out on strike have decided to join the action. In doing so, they have shown great courage”, said Stefanie Nutzenberger, a member of Ver.di’s National Executive Board who is responsible for the Commerce Department. Workers at the four Amazon locations came out on strike during the night of Sunday to Monday. By Monday afternoon, some 2000 workers had participated in the industrial action. The strike is due to continue until the late shift ends on Wednesday evening.

“Amazon is just putting up a smokescreen. The company claims that pay is based on rates in the logistics sector. In doing so, Amazon, which is a mail-order firm, is trying to hide the fact that it unilaterally sets pay levels. The company categorically refuses to engage in collective bargaining and to pay a living wage. But the workers won’t be fooled”, said Nutzenberger.

Amazon runs nine distribution centres in Germany. Workers in all locations complain that a large number of their colleagues are on short-term contracts, that they work under enormous pressure and that daily rest periods are insufficiently regulated. As Amazon refuses to negotiate a collective agreement, many of their workers are being paid several hundred euros a month less than they could expect under the collective agreements covering the retail and mail-order trade. The first strikes took place in May 2013.

For more information on the strikes, please contact:

Bad Hersfeld:Mechthild Middeke, +49 160-90907385

Graben: Thomas Gürlebeck, +49 171-4808882, Hubert Thiermeyer, +49 170-3341345

Rheinberg: Daniel Zimmermann, +49 175-5837926, Sabine Busch, +49 170-9215220

Leipzig: Thomas Schneider, +49 160-7197238

Richard Elliott
Director of Communications
Mobile: +41 79 794 9709

UNI global union
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Tel:  +41 22 365 21 30
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richard.elliott@uniglobalunion.org
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