- Senator Bernie Sanders is due to travel to Alabama on Friday to meet with Amazon workers.
- The visit would take place in the final days of a union vote at Amazon’s Bessemer service center.
- Sanders has repeatedly criticized CEO Jeff Bezos and his $ 184 billion fortune.
- See more stories on the Insider business page.
Senator Bernie Sanders is due to travel to Alabama this week to meet with Amazon workers trying to unionize.
Reporters for The Washington Post, CNN, and The Intercept said on Wednesday that the Vermont senator is scheduled to travel to Bessemer, Alabama, on Friday. The workers at the distribution center there have until Monday to vote on the formation of a union, which would be the first in Amazon’s history.
A Sanders spokesman did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
Dave Clark, head of global consumption at Amazon, said in a statement that he welcomed Sanders in Alabama.
“I often say that we are the Bernie Sanders of employers, but that’s not right because we actually offer a progressive workplace for our constituents: a $ 15 minimum wage, health care from day one, career advancement and a safe and inclusive work environment, “Clark said. “So, if you want to hear about $ 15 an hour and health care, Senator Sanders will speak downtown. But if he wants to earn at least $ 15 an hour and have a good health care system, Amazon is hiring . “
Sanders recently clashed with Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. During a Senate hearing earlier this month, Sanders criticized Bezos’ wealth and Amazon’s efforts to encourage workers to vote against unionization. Bezos declined an invitation to testify at the hearing, which was entitled “The Crisis of Income and Wealth Inequality in America”.
“If he were with us this morning, I would ask the following question … Mr. Bezos, are you worth $ 182 billion – that’s a B,” said Sanders. “One hundred and eighty-two billion dollars; you are the richest person in the world. Why are you doing everything in your power to prevent your workers in Bessemer, Alabama, from joining a union?”
Since then, Bezos’ net worth has risen to $ 184 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
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Sanders has criticized Bezos’ wealth several times in the past, telling CNN this month that the CEO was the emblem of “unrestricted capitalism” in America. Sanders also pressured Bezos to raise the minimum wage for Amazon employees and introduced a bill in 2018 called Stop Bad Employers by Zeroing Out Subsidies Act or Stop BEZOS. The bill was not voted on, but that year Amazon raised its minimum wage to $ 15 an hour.
The Amazon union’s vote in Alabama caught the attention of other politicians, including Senator Marco Rubio, who expressed support for the union, and President Joe Biden, who said in a video that “there should be no intimidation, coercion, threats, no anti-union propaganda “from employers.
Amazon vehemently opposed the formation of a union, arguing that it would only cost workers more money in fees and provide benefits that Amazon already offers them.
The company aggressively pressured employees to vote against unionization. Officials told Insider that Amazon has started distributing “no-vote” pins and hosting frequent union briefings, as well as running anti-union ads on Twitch and placing signs in the bathrooms.