- Bezos turned down Sanders’ invitation to testify during a trial, but the senator had harsh words for him.
- Sanders has criticized Amazon’s opposition to a trade union in Alabama, despite the CEO’s record wealth.
- The trial included testimony from a union worker at Amazon’s Bessemer warehouse.
- See more stories on Insider’s business page.
Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke critically during a hearing on Wednesday morning about Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, who turned down Sanders’ invitation to testify, and Elon Musk, the two richest men.
“Bezos and Musk now own more wealth than the bottom 40%. In the meantime, we’re looking at more hunger in America than ever in decades,” Sanders said in his opening speech at the Senate Budget Committee hearing, entitled The Income and wealth inequality crisis in America.
“If he were with us this morning, I would ask him the following question … Mr. Bezos, you’re worth $ 182 billion – that’s a B, ” Sanders said. One hundred and eighty-two billion dollars, you are the richest person in the world. Why are you doing everything in your power to stop your workers from joining a union in Bessemer, Alabama? ‘
The trade union push voted on in Amazon’s Bessemer Fulfillment Center was at the center of a sensational labor dispute between the ‘everything store’ and the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. Amazon aggressively pushed its workers to vote against union and launched a campaign called “Do It Without Debt” to encourage employees to stick to the status quo.
Sanders pointed to the inequality between Bezos’ wealth growth during the pandemic and the struggle of compatriots.
“Jeff Bezos became $ 77 billion richer during this horrific pandemic, while denying that hundreds of thousands of workers working at Amazon paid sick leave,” he said.
Jennifer Bates, an employee at the Bessemer warehouse who testified during Wednesday’s trial, said the union effort was an attempt to have a level playing field. ‘Assets cited difficult working conditions, long hours and a lack of job security as the main drivers of the union effort.
“Amazon boasts that it pays workers above the minimum wage,” she said. “What they are not telling you is how that job really is. And they are certainly not telling you what they can afford.”
Asked what a union would mean for her and her colleagues, Bates said it would lead to ‘strengthening’ and a ‘sense of empowerment’, not just at the Amazon in Bessemer but across the country as well. . ‘
“We take the feedback from employees seriously, including Ms. Bates, but we do not believe her comments represent the more than 90% of her colleagues at her fulfillment center who say they would recommend Amazon as an excellent workplace for friends and family. not.” an Amazon spokesman told Insider. ‘We encourage people to talk to the hundreds of thousands of Amazon employees who love their jobs, earn at least $ 15 an hour, receive comprehensive health care benefits and paid leave, prefer a direct dialogue with their executives, and choose Amazon # 2 on the Forbes best. employer list in 2020. ‘
While much of the trial was devoted to the union battle against Amazon, which is set to end in March, Sanders said “Amazon and Jeff Bezos are not alone” and called the “corporate greed” that is causing the income inequality, reject.
Others who testified during the hearing included former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, who said unions were important and had cited the sharp decline in union membership since the heyday of labor in the mid-1900s.
Sanders was an outspoken critic of Amazon, while President Joe Biden took a softer approach to referring to the union. In a statement earlier in March, Biden condemned ‘anti-union propaganda’ from big companies, but did not like Amazon’s name.