Amazon’s chief consumer punched Senator Bernie Sanders for planning a visit to Alabama, where there are currently historic union elections in one of the company’s warehouses.
Dave Clark, CEO of Amazon’s global consumer business, fired a series of tweets Wednesday and Thursday mornings, defending the company’s work practices and slapping Vermont’s independent senator for the debate over the increase in federal minimum wage.
On Friday, Sanders, rapper Killer Mike and actor Danny Glover will meet with Amazon workers in Bessemer, Alabama, who are in the process of voting if they join the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) . The meeting will be held in an RWDSU union room in Birmingham, Alabama. Workers began voting by mail on Feb. 8 and voting must be delivered by Monday. The count will begin the next day.
“Welcome [Sanders] in Birmingham and thank him for his push for a progressive job, “Clark wrote in a tweet Wednesday.” I often say we’re entrepreneurs Bernie Sanders, but it’s not entirely right because we really offer a progressive job. “
Clark doubled down Thursday, arguing that the minimum wage in Sanders ’home state of Vermont is $ 11.75 per hour, while the down payment for Amazon workers is $ 15 per hour.
Amazon and some of its executives have previously beaten Sanders, who is a frequent critic of Amazon. Following criticism from Sanders and other labor advocates, Amazon in 2018 announced that it would increase its minimum wage to $ 15 per hour.
In addition, last week, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos turned down an invitation from Sanders to appear before the Senate Budget Committee for a hearing on revenue inequality. Sanders, who is chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, also called for Jennifer Bates, a Bessemer warehouse worker where union elections take place, to testify.
Amazon has played defense, as support for the union has increased from President Joe Biden and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. In recent weeks, the company has frequently responded to criticism of its work practices on Twitter and promoted its minimum wage of $ 15 per hour in print and digital ads.
Labor leaders and legislators have taken advantage of the election because of its potential to initiate similar movements in other companies and in other industries. Some Amazon employees in other parts of the country are hoping the union will be successful so they can turn on support to organize their own jobs.
Amazon has previously said it respects the right of workers to join a union, but also that its workers do not need a union between themselves and the company. He has held mandatory meetings with workers in which the case was declared against the unions and a website was set up urging workers to “do it without quotas”.