Shakopee Amazon workers protest wages, lack of time off for Eid holiday
FILE - An Amazon logo appears on an Amazon delivery van, Thursday, Oct. 1, 2020, in Boston. Amazon announced Wednesday, April 13, 2022, its free streaming service IMDb TV will be renamed Amazon Freevee. The company says the new name will take effect on April 27. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)
Workers at the Amazon Shakopee warehouse location walked off the job Friday, protesting wages and a lack of time off for the Muslim holiday of Eid, which marks the end of Ramadan.
Workers are reportedly asking for higher pay—specifically, a $3 per hour increase for all workers—as well as unlimited voluntary time off (VTO) for those to observe Eid.
Speaking about the demands, current Amazon worker Tyler Hamilton said, “Imagine if you worked on Christmas and Amazon forced you to. You couldn’t see your families, you couldn’t spend time with them. That would be ridiculous, no one would like that. Amazon is doing that with Eid right now, and they get away with it—just like they got away with lowering our pay as the cost of housing goes up, the cost of food goes up.”
Workers reportedly delivered a demand letter in English, Somali, and Spanish to the management of the Shakopee facility.
5 EYEWITNESS NEWS reached out to Amazon for comment; the company provided the following statement:
“Our employees are the heart of Amazon and we provide several ways for employees to raise concerns or provide feedback directly to us if they see room for improvement.”