Employee Activism On The Rise
Between February 8 and March 29, Amazon warehouse employees in Alabama will vote on whether they will form a union or not.
One of the main goals of the employees who seek to unionize is to improve working conditions. Since March 2020, Amazon warehouse employees worldwide have protested and even held strikes against working conditions at the warehouses. Amazon emphasizes its high wages, good benefits, and high employment numbers, arguing the employees seeking to unionize only represent a small number of their employees.
The upcoming union vote is not the first time Amazon employees have voted on forming a union. In 2014, Amazon warehouse employees in Delaware voted against forming a union.ย Amazon has historically been anti-union. They have successfully kept away large labor unions from forming since 1994, the year the company was founded.
There seems to be a general increase in employee activism at big tech companies. Earlier this year, more than 400 employees at Google and parent company Alphabet formed a labor union. The labor union is called the Alphabet Workers Union and was created in secret for about a year after increased complaints about working conditions and alleged unethical business practices.
Unions are quite rare in the tech industry, which makes this increase in employee activism so interesting. What do you think is the driver behind this increase in employee activism, and do you think the trend will continue?
I am not a financial advisor and my comments should never be taken as financial advice. Investments come with risk, so always do your research and analysis beforehand.