The New York City Pension Fund, which represents teachers, the police department, the fire department and other unions, together with the New York State Pension Fund and the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office voted against the re-election of Amazon directors Daniel Huttenlocher. Is. Judith McGrath. Both directors sit on a committee on Amazon’s board that oversees leadership development.
In an interview, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, a Democrat, said that Amazon directors have repeatedly declined requests to meet and discuss Amazon’s treatment with its employees, which the group says “states and violate federal law and also conflict with Amazon’s own human rights policy.”
The funds allege that Amazon’s board has not adequately overseen the health and safety of its employees and has expressed concerns about employee injury and turnover rates at Amazon workplaces.
When asked for comment, an Amazon spokesperson provided the company’s security report. “In 2021, we invested $300 million in safety improvements such as capital improvements, new safety technology, vehicle safety controls and engineering ergonomic solutions,” the report said.
Institutional investors have asked for shareholder proposals in the past urging better workplace conditions for employees, but it is rare for an investor to urge other shareholders to vote for directors on the issue. The fund accounts for just over $5.3 billion in Amazon shares, or about 0.3% of the company’s $1.6 trillion market value. Mr Lander said he plans to encourage other pension funds and investors to join the campaign to vote against the directors. The New York State Pension Fund is overseen by New York State Comptroller Thomas Dinapoli, a Democrat.
Amazon employees were seriously hurt last year at twice the rate of non-Amazon warehouses, according to a study published this month by the Strategic Organizing Center, a coalition of four labor unions. Amazon has said that its injury rate is slightly higher than its warehouse peers, and slightly lower than peers in the courier and delivery business, putting it on par with others overall.
Some Amazon employees say the company has unrealistic expectations for the speed at which they want workers to sort packages. According to interviews, in some places, they are expected to produce hundreds of packages an hour to support the company’s quick-delivery mechanism. For workers seeking to organize, those performance quotas are usually among the top issues they think a union can help address, employees said.
Chief executive Andy Jesse said in his annual letter to shareholders this month that the company’s employee-injury rates are “sometimes misunderstood,” but he vowed to improve. Amazon President Jeff Bezos vowed last year to make Amazon “earth’s best employer.”
Amazon has introduced new safety training related to body mechanics and increased pay and benefits during the past two years. Mr Jassi said the company wants to further improve safety by focusing on reducing strain, falls and repetitive-stress injuries.
Earlier this month, Reps. Corey Bush (D., Mo.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., NY) sent a letter to Mr. Jesse on behalf of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform requesting documents related to Amazon’s labor practices. , especially during severe weather. In December, after a series of tornadoes in several states killed dozens, six workers at an Amazon warehouse in Illinois were killed.
His letter points to media reports that Amazon managers were threatened by their bosses that they would be fired if they left work to find shelter.
Amazon has said warehouse workers had little time to prepare for the tornado, and officials have said the company made significant efforts that night to ensure the safety of employees.
The pension fund move adds new pressure on labor issues at Amazon as the company grapples with a growing union movement. Earlier this month, Amazon warehouse workers in Staten Island, NY, voted to form the tech giant’s first union in the US, providing a victory for labor workers who have long held the nation’s second-largest private sector. Representation has been sought for the employer. Workers at a second Staten Island warehouse are set to vote on unionization next week.
The “vote no” campaign on Amazon directors, Mr Lander said, was unanimously approved by five New York City pension funds, which represent some of the country’s largest unions. He said he was concerned by reports that Amazon management had attempted to undermine unionization efforts. ,
Amazon executives have said they recognize their employees’ right to unionize, but believe employees would be better off without unions.
Amazon is also an active investor target. As The Wall Street Journal reported, in February, Dan Loeb, whose Third Point LLC counts Amazon as one of its largest holdings, told its investors that there was $1 trillion unused in Amazon stock. is value. Mr. Loeb said he thinks Amazon will achieve greater value as two separate companies: retail and cloud computing. But there are no indications that Mr. Loeb is planning a full-fledged campaign.
This story has been published without modification to the text from a wire agency feed