German union Verdi calls for strikes at Amazon on Black Friday

Nov 23 (Reuters) – German trade union Verdi has called on members to go on strike at five Amazon (AMZN.O) distribution centres across Germany on Black Friday, it said in a statement on Thursday.
Strong demand thanks to bargains on Black Friday mean the day is usually one of the most profitable for online retailers like Amazon.
“Amazon employees have decided to rename Black Friday ‘Make Amazon Pay Day'”, said Silke Zimmer, the member for retail on Verdi’s governing board.
Work will come to a standstill from Thursday’s night shift and throughout Friday, the union said, as part of a dispute that began in 2013 over Amazon’s refusal to recognise industry-wide pay agreements.
The affected centres are in Koblenz, Leipzig, Rheinberg, Dortmund and Bad Hersfeld, Verdi said.
The US company has repeatedly stated that pay, benefits and career opportunities at the company are “excellent.”
“It’s not for nothing that half of our colleagues have been with us for over five years,” said an Amazon spokesperson on Thursday.
Reporting by Matthias Inverardi
Writing by Louis van Boxel-Woolf
Editing by Miranda Murray
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