Ruling expected in battle between French unions and Amazon
A French court ruling expected Friday could serve as a key litmus test of workers’ rights vs Amazon’s services.
While businesses across the world have shuttered operations in the wake of coronavirus, online retail giant Amazon has seen its profits skyrocket.
Online shopping has become an essential service for millions of people throughout the globe sheltering at home under lockdown orders to stem the spread of COVID-19. But Amazon’s booming business has also invited intense scrutiny over the conditions in which workers fulfil all those orders. Now, a ruling expected on Friday by a French court could serve as a key litmus test of where the balance lies between Amazon’s retail services and workers’ rights.
French unions and activists say that the online delivery behemoth is not doing enough to protect workers in its French fulfilment centres against possible exposure to the coronavirus, arguing among other things that it is difficult to observe social-distancing measures in the busy warehouses.
Amazon argues that it has strengthened safety measures.
Last week, a French court ruled against the online giant and ordered it to stop delivery of all “non-essential” goods within 24 hours or face a fine of 1 million euros ($1.1m) per day for non-compliance.
The ruling was seen as a big win for France’s mighty and forceful labour unions, which filed the initial complaint against Amazon. But instead of following the order to the letter, Amazon went much further. It suspended operations at all six of its French warehouses and appealed the court’s decision.
‘Continuity of life’ service vs safety concerns
Amazon says there is too much ambiguity over what qualifies as “non-essential” vs “essential” goods. But labour unions and other activists say Amazon is trying to buy time and paint itself as the wronged party.
“[Amazon] wants to play the victim,” Alma Dufour, a campaigner with the French chapter of the environmental group Friends of the Earth, told Al Jazeera. “They’re pursuing this communication strategy to frame the decision as unfair because France is the only country where we have seen this kind of ruling.”
Dufour is also concerned that the French government’s plans to begin reopening the economy by mid-May could swing momentum in Amazon’s favour.
“We are in a way fearing this wider context will be beneficial for Amazon,” said Dufour.
On Thursday, France’s Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said he wanted most businesses to be able to open when the nationwide lockdown lifts on May 11, with the exception of bars and restaurants.
Amazon argued its appeal on Tuesday with a court ruling expected on Friday.
When asked by Al Jazeera to comment, Amazon replied with a statement: “Following our appeal hearing on Tuesday 21st April, we continue to keep our French Fulfilment Centres closed temporarily. We will review our position once the appeal court judgement has been made on Friday 24th April.”
The appeal ruling comes as Amazon faces mounting pressure from workers in other countries who complain of overcrowding in warehouses and a lack of proper safety measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“Amazon has given workers little to no direction on safety measures,” Laurent Degousee, of the Sud Commerce labour union, told Al Jazeera.
Degousee said while Amazon refused to provide any official numbers on positive cases in French warehouses, he has received multiple reports from workers experiencing coronavirus symptoms across Amazon’s six fulfilment centres in France, which employ around 10,000 people. Degousee added that workers are being paid during the temporary suspension.
During its appeal hearing on Tuesday, Amazon’s lawyers defended the company’s safety protocols, arguing that the original ruling against it did not take into account recent changes made to its procedures. The lawyers also highlighted the customers who rely on its services during the country’s strict confinement.
“Amazon’s work is absolutely necessary for the continuity of life in this country,” Francois Farmine, one of the company’s lawyers, told judges at the hearing. “The company must be able to continue its activities as normal, just as other companies have been able to do so.”
Lawyers for the labour unions re-emphasised concerns that the company is failing to take health and safety measures seriously.
“All the labour unions involved believe serious breaches have been committed,” said Jonathan Cadot, one of the union lawyers. The union lawyers added that Amazon has failed to comply with orders banning gatherings of 100 people or more.
‘Stronger than before the crisis’
Despite the case, some analysts predict Amazon’s operations in France will continue to surge as more consumers turn to online shopping.
“The fear is that the company will re-emerge from all this even more powerful after this crisis,” Philippe Moati, an economist and professor at the University of Paris-Diderot told Al Jazeera.
Moati says that Amazon’s diversification strategy, which has made the company a one-stop-shop for everything from groceries to cloud storage, has made it a standout during the coronavirus crisis.
According to Kantar, a consulting group, Amazon accounted for 22 percent of all online purchases made in France last year- making it by far the most popular e-commerce site in the country. Its second-closest competitor, Cdiscount, accounted for only 8 percent.
While hundreds of thousands of businesses have been forced to shut down since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, Amazon’s sales have surged. The company’s share price has rocketed nearly 40 percent since mid-March.
Concerns beyond France
French workers are not the only ones sounding the alarm over health protocols in Amazon’s warehouses. Amazon workers in the United States have been staging walkouts and other protests, asking for independent investigations into working conditions which they say violate multiple health guidelines during the pandemic.
After workers at a New York City warehouse staged a walkout in late March over health conditions, Amazon subsequently started administering daily temperature checks at locations around the US and distributing masks. Amazon also said it would give two weeks’ sick leave to anyone who tests positive for the virus.
Amazon later fired the worker who helped organise the New York City warehouse walkout, saying he had violated social distancing guidelines and refused to stay quarantined after being exposed to a colleague who had tested positive for the coronavirus. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has ordered an investigation into the matter.
Workers in the US are still calling on Amazon to address a number of demands, including more transparency, better protective gear and immediate closures and sanitisation of any warehouse with a confirmed case of COVID-19.
More protests have been called for this week. Organisers say workers have tested positive for the coronavirus in more than 130 warehouses across the country.
Friends of the Earth’s Dufour says US workers face a much higher threat of being penalised for the walkouts because they are not unionised.
“It shows the importance of having strong unions,” Dufour told Al Jazeera. “We have already seen multiple people workers in the US fired for signaling the alarm … we are definitely a bit more protected in France.”