As per company policies governing Delivery Service Partners (DSPs) – small, independent businesses contracted to transport Amazon packages – the company reportedly expects drivers to adhere to a strict set of rules, including maintaining an “acceptable level” of personal grooming. This includes but is “not limited to prevention of unpleasant …
Read More »New World Mordor: Amazon and New Zealand’s Lord of the Rings deal lays bare the ‘idyllic’ nation’s role in global surveillance
But there’s no worry of Amazon Studios going bust fulfilling its Middle Earth fantasies, because the New Zealand government is subsidising the series via a special 25% rebate for production costs. As well as being the most expensive TV show in history, Amazon’s Lord of the Rings project will also …
Read More »Amazon wins union battle as employees and organizers cry foul
The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU), which Amazon’s Bessemer employees had hoped to join, has announced on Friday that it would be filing suit with the National Labor Relations Board to overturn the results of their latest unionization drive. The retail giant had “created an atmosphere of confusion, …
Read More »‘Our system is broken’: Amazon accused of ‘illegal & egregious’ behavior as early voting results deal blow to unionizing drive
Some 463 ‘yes’ votes were recorded after ballot-counting ended on Thursday evening, far outpaced by the 1,100 in opposition, according to local media. While the count is set to resume on Friday morning, the org at the center of the battle, the Retail, Wholesale & Department Store Union (RWDSU), has …
Read More »Jeff Bezos says Amazon backs Biden’s corporate tax hike, gets roasted for ‘exploiting loopholes’ to pay less
Bezos took to a company blog on Tuesday to back the hefty “American Jobs” spending plan, which includes a corporate tax hike from 21% to 28%, unveiled by the Joe Biden administration last week. “We support the Biden Administration’s focus on making bold investments in American infrastructure,” the executive chairman …
Read More »Psst! Sorry not sorry: Amazon apologizes to congressman it dumped on for tweeting about Amazon workers pissing in bottles
Last week, Amazon’s official Twitter account went after Representative Mark Pocan (D-WI), after he brought up the urination issue in a debate over minimum wage. “You don’t really believe the peeing in bottles thing, do you? If that were true, nobody would work for us,” Amazon responded, before touting itself …
Read More »Not bots, comedians! Amazon reportedly recruited Twitter army of employees with ‘great sense of humor’ to defend company
The online retailer has been mocked and ridiculed for the seemingly inorganic support that it has received on social media amid claims of poor working conditions and an attempt by some employees to unionize. Thanks to leaked internal documents obtained by the Intercept, we now have a better understanding of …
Read More »Pro-Amazon bots fill Twitter with anti-union rhetoric as company faces first unionized facility in Big Tech history
The last batches of votes from Amazon warehouse workers in Bessemer, Alabama are being counted to determine whether the facility will be Amazon’s first – and by extension Big Tech’s first – to unionize, a massive milestone that Amazon seems to dread despite its sky-high profit margins. On Monday night, …
Read More »‘Trumpification of Big Tech’: Amazon fires back at Elizabeth Warren suggesting they should be broken up
“One of the most powerful politicians in the United States just said she’s going to break up an American company so that they can’t criticize her anymore,” Amazon tweeted in response to an “extraordinary” tweet in which Warren suggested breaking up “Big Tech” so they can’t “heckle senators.” The tiff …
Read More »Facebook & Amazon emerge as 2 biggest corporate lobbyists, as big tech breaks own spending record in 2020 election cycle – report
Facebook and Amazon are now the two biggest corporate lobbying spenders in the country, according to a new report by Public Citizen, a progressive nonprofit group. Facebook spent nearly $20 million during the 2020 election cycle, with Amazon splurging just under $19 million. Behind them were telecoms giant Comcast in …
Read More »