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Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

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191–200 of 303 posts

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#191

The general issue with the largest employers in the neoliberalized countries (Amazon, Walmart) relative to the outsourced sectors (manufacturing mainly) is that wages are now much lower for the blue-collar worker, who is now doing service/shipping (~$15/hr -> ~$30k/yr) rather than manufacturing (~$30/hr -> ~$60k/yr). Amazon employs about one million people in the United States, and unionization and collective bargain…

Amazon net income is less than $30B. They also do not pay dividends.

I'd expect that an across-the-board increase in Amazon prices would be a side effect of unionization and wage increases, perhaps by 10%. I don't think that this would reduce consumer demand much, however, or make Amazon a non-viable concern.

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#192

The general issue with the largest employers in the neoliberalized countries (Amazon, Walmart) relative to the outsourced sectors (manufacturing mainly) is that wages are now much lower for the blue-collar worker, who is now doing service/shipping (~$15/hr -> ~$30k/yr) rather than manufacturing (~$30/hr -> ~$60k/yr). Amazon employs about one million people in the United States, and unionization and collective bargain…

Amazon net income is less than $30B. They also do not pay dividends.

No post body was provided.

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> Amazon starts at $18/hr I think it's a lie. AFAIK they pay warehouse workers $15/hour. As you start your message with lying, the rest of is BS. Safety, by the way, means not being afraid of being shut by a right-wing delusional maniac.

"The average starting wage of $18 an hour will be effective in regions where labor markets are tight, while the company will continue to pay a minimum wage of $15 an hour, said Dave Bozeman, vice president of delivery services at Amazon." So "lie" is a bit strong here.

>> while the company will continue to pay a minimum wage of $15 an hour

Like I said, it's $15/h

But anyway, the federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour and there is zero chance that it will be increased.

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#194
post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This mirrors real life interactions with union organizers in my family (as workers). Anything less than rah rah the union you get shunned and ostracized as some business shill. These bullying tactics are why I avoid unions.

Lol ah, yes, Amazon is the good guy here and magically it's now the union organizers who are harassing employees. Just when I thought my eyes couldn't roll any harder.

On an article titled "Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers" no less!

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#195

It’s get screwed by Amazon or get screwed by some union boss. The only winning move is not to play.

Unionised workplaces tend to have higher wages and better benefits, by not playing one will just end up in a non-unionised workplace with worse wages. UK data: https://www.statista.com/statistics/287278/uk-trade-union-wa... USA: https://work.chron.com/union-wages-12818.html

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#196
post #134
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That Canada is also located in America, and if someone from Canada identifies "America" with the US they are belittling their own country? I mean, the sentence wouldn't have been less understandable if they had used "US-style" instead of "American-style"?

I feel your gripe, in Québec we sometimes make a point of saying "états-uniens" (rather than "américains") which rolls of the tongue smoothly, but United Statians doesn't ring as well in English. What good word is there to call Americans other than Americans? I've never heard someone use another term in English. However if it's belittling Canada, it's certainly belittling the other 55 countries of the Americas that s…

Yank. Historically based, no ambiguity.

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#197
They might want to be somewhat careful here so as to not piss off the provincial government. As a foreign, anglophone company, I’m sure there’s a rule or inspection they can produce if they need to to make Amazon’s life miserable. And they won’t care if Amazon leaves.

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#198
post #6

It's a testament to how effective propaganda can be when you see how easily you can get people to vote against their own interests. It's crazy to me that anyone who works in these Amazon warehouses votes agains tunionization but they do [1]. Even in the successful vote, there were still a lot of "no" votes. Unionization in the US is the lowest of all OECD nations (~10%) [2]. Is it any wonder US workers don't get paid…

>get 2 weeks vacation? I had to laugh at this one. When I worked construction plumbing (non-union, "free-to-work" state), I received 0 days vacation and 2 days of sick pay per year. You're saying this is a testament to the effectiveness of the propaganda and I'll back that up, anecdotally, having worked around those very people that vote against their own interests. I was even rejected from taking two weeks off when…

> When I worked construction plumbing (non-union, "free-to-work" state), I received 0 days vacation and 2 days of sick pay per year.

That's just crazy! Meanwhile here in Austria employees have a legal right to 5 weeks of paid vacation...

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#199
post #6

It's a testament to how effective propaganda can be when you see how easily you can get people to vote against their own interests. It's crazy to me that anyone who works in these Amazon warehouses votes agains tunionization but they do [1]. Even in the successful vote, there were still a lot of "no" votes. Unionization in the US is the lowest of all OECD nations (~10%) [2]. Is it any wonder US workers don't get paid…

Why the hell is this flagged?

Re: Amazon is intimidating and harassing organizing workers in Montreal

#200
post #134

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel your gripe, in Québec we sometimes make a point of saying "états-uniens" (rather than "américains") which rolls of the tongue smoothly, but United Statians doesn't ring as well in English. What good word is there to call Americans other than Americans? I've never heard someone use another term in English. However if it's belittling Canada, it's certainly belittling the other 55 countries of the Americas that s…

Yank. Historically based, no ambiguity.

There's a lot of ambiguity. Yes, many people outside the US use the term to refer to people from the US in general, but technically Yanks/Yankees are only the people from New England (the Northeastern US states). Someone from the US South or West aren't Yankees.
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