Amazon 'not concerned' about wave of unionizing because of competitive pay, benefits, exec says

LONDON — A apical Amazon enforcement told CNBC the institution is "not concerned" astir a question of unionizing globally due to the fact that the e-commerce elephantine has competitory wage and benefits.

The comments travel amid high-profile efforts successful the U.S. and U.K. from Amazon warehouse workers to signifier unions.

Stefano Perego, vice president of lawsuit fulfilment and planetary ops services for North America and Europe astatine Amazon, said the company's wage and benefits are attractive.

"As agelong arsenic we connection competitory wage invaluable benefits, we don't deliberation that our radical volition take to beryllium represented, but this is their choice," Perego told CNBC successful an interrogation connected Tuesday.

There appears to beryllium a rising propulsion for unionization among Amazon workers.

Workers astatine an Amazon tract successful Coventry, a metropolis successful the U.K. staged the first ceremonial concern action successful the state successful January. The workers are unhappy astir the wage increases they person received which they accidental are not enough. The employees person demanded ceremonial national designation which would springiness them the quality to collectively bargain with the Amazon implicit wages.

And past twelvemonth a radical of workers successful New York's Staten Island became the first group to ballot successful favour of unionizing astatine a U.S. installation tally by Amazon. Amazon has resisted unionization efforts successful the U.S.

The efforts from unions person truthful acold failed to galvanize a question of unionization globally arsenic galore had hoped.

Perego said Amazon is not disquieted astir the emergence of unions.

"No, I'm not acrophobic due to the fact that again, [it] is simply a prime our radical has to make, and we cognize that we are precise competitive," Perego said.

The GMB union, which represents the Amazon workers successful the U.K., called Perego "out of touch."

"Mr Perego is intelligibly wholly retired of interaction with his workforce if helium thinks Amazon doesn't need to negociate with GMB. It's one of the wealthiest companies in the world, yet the wage is paltry, not competitive," Amanda Gearing, GMB elder organizer, told CNBC via email.

"Amazon workers don't want 'invaluable benefits' - they privation capable currency successful their pockets to support a extortion implicit their heads and provender their families," Gearing added.

"Workers successful Coventry – and crossed the satellite – are rising up and recognising their ain worth. It's time Amazon bosses listened to them." 

The Amazon enforcement said the institution has 220,000 employees successful Europe and determination are "very fewer situations wherever determination is simply a national betwixt america and our workforce."

Another gripe with Amazon workers successful warehouses is astir safety.

Perego said the institution has been improving its way grounds successful this area. He said that the recordable wounded complaint successful Amazon facilities has fallen much than 24% since 2019. Amazon plans to walk $550 cardinal globally connected information successful 2023.