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Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

politico.eu

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Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#11

Post by redgc »

I live in Stockholm, and order regularly from Amazon Germany already. It's free shipping if you order 39 euro or above, which usually delivers things in around a week. Fast shipping of two working days costs 9 euro per shipment.

Based on what I've read and this article, it doesn't sound like that much will change once it officially "launches" a Swedish site, although maybe Amazon will lower the minimum amount for free shipping or speed up regular shipping time. Re: this article, I can see them being willing to hold off for quite some time.

Also to note: During the Covid-19 peak in Sweden, Amazon provided to-the-door delivery using Postnord, which I figured was somewhat of an experiment for when the Swedish site launched. It's pretty rare here in e-commerce to get door deliveries - most online shopping is sent to local convenience stores and you need to go and pick up.

Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#12

Post by bkor »

docdeek wrote: post #3

> Initially, Swedish and Nordic clients will be mainly served from German warehouses — known as fulfillment centers in Amazon-speak — with trucks driving up to Sweden through Denmark, and a fulfillment center operated by local partner Kuehne + Nagel in the Swedish town of Eskilstuna, near Stockholm. During the lockdown here in France Amazon was forced to close some warehouses and filfillment centers under pressure fr…

> After a week or so we started getting our deliveries again, usually with an extra day of delay because it was being fulfilled from Germany.

In some other industries (shipping) you have to be really careful to do that. There's various laws against breaking up (the effectiveness of) a strike. That's currently often only applied within one country. If Amazon does something similar more often enough they'll probably get hit with an EU-wide law instead.

It's always weird that internet based companies aren't treated like any other company. Unfair competition IMO.

Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#13

Post by Jolter »

waihtis wrote: post #8

Nordic politicians will cave in like everyone else. Generally it's funny how this region (Nordics) is reported in the media as some kinds of rationalist demi-gods, when in reality most politics here are just your regular smokescreen mixed with wishful thinking and a lack of understanding the real world. In conclusion, politicians will do as politicians do nowerdays - drive their own career over the 'public good'.

You seem to be misguided about the influence of politics on labor negotiations in Sweden. There is no mandate for a politician to interfere, it is entirely a thing between the two bargaining parties. That is, unless you can gather a political majority behind a major upheaval of the current law, which would have to happen after the next election because no such majority exists today.

Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#14

Post by guerrilla »

Assuming that local production reduces costs, the question seems to become whether they can leverage demand to break the unions or not. This comes from the two further assumptions that they don't have any other leverage to do so (outside of corruption) and even though the benefit of satsifying the market presumably outststrips the cost, they will do everything they can to reduce costs anyway.

Am I missing anything?

I'll continue supporting the local competition (for books and media) in any case.

Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#15

Post by progre »

matsemann wrote: post #6

Good luck with Sweden's one hour lunch break. And the fika breaks every hour as well. Sorry Jeff, no forcing workers to pee in bottles among the shelves[1] in Sweden to drive up the stock price. I hope the Nordic countries wont bow down to Amazon's exploits. [1]: https://www.theverge.com/2018/4/16/17243026/amazon-warehouse...

Well the lunch break is not work time in Sweden so if you have a 1 hour lunch you just work longer in the afternoon. 30 minutes lunch (scheduled to fit the shifts) has been the norm when I have done blue collar work. I don't know anyone who has fika every hour. 15 minutes breakfast break and 15 minutes in the afternoon (on the clock) is normal.

Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#16

Post by redgc »

redgc wrote: post #11

I live in Stockholm, and order regularly from Amazon Germany already. It's free shipping if you order 39 euro or above, which usually delivers things in around a week. Fast shipping of two working days costs 9 euro per shipment. Based on what I've read and this article, it doesn't sound like that much will change once it officially "launches" a Swedish site, although maybe Amazon will lower the minimum amount for fre…

Something I forgot to add: Sweden does have some great gig worker to-the-door delivery companies that have sprung up, particularly around small items like from online pharmacies. When you fulfill an order using those companies they typically have a great monitoring app to track where your delivery is, to input your building door code if necessary, inform you when it's been left outside your door, etc.

I always find it a great contrast to compare to premium shipping companies like DHL and FedEx, whenever I'm unlucky enough to get a delivery from them from overseas. They're still stuck in a world of "we'll deliver between 9am and 6pm, be ready" and they also make little attempt to ask for door codes if you live in the inner city, so most first attempts end up with "premises was not accessible" with no convenient way to give them the four digit code they need. I spent 1+ hour on hold last week with DHL and FedEx for this exact purpose. It will be interesting to see how "modern" of an approach Amazon takes.

Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#17

Post by tokai »

waihtis wrote: post #8

Nordic politicians will cave in like everyone else. Generally it's funny how this region (Nordics) is reported in the media as some kinds of rationalist demi-gods, when in reality most politics here are just your regular smokescreen mixed with wishful thinking and a lack of understanding the real world. In conclusion, politicians will do as politicians do nowerdays - drive their own career over the 'public good'.

It's foremost an issue between amazon and the unions. The labour market in the Nordic countries are organized through negotiations between employers and the workers. Usually the state tries to stay out of it, letting the labour marked self-regulate.

Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#18

Post by waihtis »

Jolter wrote: post #13
waihtis wrote: post #8

Nordic politicians will cave in like everyone else. Generally it's funny how this region (Nordics) is reported in the media as some kinds of rationalist demi-gods, when in reality most politics here are just your regular smokescreen mixed with wishful thinking and a lack of understanding the real world. In conclusion, politicians will do as politicians do nowerdays - drive their own career over the 'public good'.

You seem to be misguided about the influence of politics on labor negotiations in Sweden. There is no mandate for a politician to interfere, it is entirely a thing between the two bargaining parties. That is, unless you can gather a political majority behind a major upheaval of the current law, which would have to happen after the next election because no such majority exists today.

Potentially true, my reflection point is Finland instead of Sweden. Unions over here are however thinly masked extensions of political parties, yes they operate somewhat independently but each political party has a 'favourite' union who they influence through unofficial channels.

Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#19

Post by redgc »

navidfarhadi wrote: post #9

I'm very interested to see how Amazon's entry into the Swedish market plays out. I used to shop a lot on Amazon back when I lived in the SF Bay Area and thought I would miss it when I moved to Stockholm but honestly that has not been the case. I get 1-2 day shipping from other online retailers in Sweden anyway (like CDON and Webhallen) and there is quite fierce competition between a few of the bigger names in the gam…

I always attempt to shop from Amazon Germany because (a) larger variety of items, and (b) I feel I can trust the reviews there. Have you found Swedish e-commerce sites to have enough reliable reviews to buy anything with confidence, or do you tend to buy products that you can find reviews of elsewhere? I joke to my wife, "If 500 Germans say it's good, I'm sold"

Re: Amazon’s business model meets Sweden’s labor unions

#20

Post by guerrilla »

Jolter wrote: post #13
waihtis wrote: post #8

Nordic politicians will cave in like everyone else. Generally it's funny how this region (Nordics) is reported in the media as some kinds of rationalist demi-gods, when in reality most politics here are just your regular smokescreen mixed with wishful thinking and a lack of understanding the real world. In conclusion, politicians will do as politicians do nowerdays - drive their own career over the 'public good'.

You seem to be misguided about the influence of politics on labor negotiations in Sweden. There is no mandate for a politician to interfere, it is entirely a thing between the two bargaining parties. That is, unless you can gather a political majority behind a major upheaval of the current law, which would have to happen after the next election because no such majority exists today.

> That is, unless you can gather a political majority behind a major upheaval of the current law, wh

But hasn't this already happened with recent reforms regarding the limiting of strike rights [1] and current LAS negotiations.

[1] https://www.arbetaren.se/2019/06/19/riksdagen-klubbade-inskr...

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