Court of Appeal upholds Amazon's obligation to restrict its activity to essential products pending the assessment of occupational risks on all its products. warehouses. A iAmazon is prohibited from sending non-essential products such as computers, smartphones and cultural products.
On April 24, the Versailles Court of Appeal upheld the decision of the Nanterre court ordering Amazon to restrict the activity of its warehouses to essential products under a penalty payment of 100,000 euros per day of delay or per infraction observed. 100,000 per day of delay or per infraction. The decision applied "pending an assessment of the occupational risks inherent in the covid-19 epidemic in all its warehouses, in conjunction with staff representatives". The group had subsequently announced the closure of its infrastructures for a period of five days, extended by two days, a closure supported by the Social and Economic Committee (SEC) to clean up the sites, assess the risks and implement the necessary preventive measures. Amazon had appealed against the Nanterre court's ruling.
In addition to Friends of the Earth's intervention in the legal recourse of Solidaires, civil society, and first and foremost Attac and Friends of the Earth, have mobilised a lot to support the action of trade unions, notably by several email and tweets campaigns to the attention of Muriel Pénicaud, Minister of Labour, calling for the closure of Amazon sites for endangering the lives of others.
The decision came at a time when Amazon had increased its communications and advertising to convey the idea that it was giving priority to the health and safety of its employees, while at the same time blackmailing employees and ostracizing unions. However, numerous testimonies show that barrier gestures were not respected in its warehouses, which is confirmed by the Versailles ruling.
Attac says it wants to be vigilant on the conditions for the implementation of the Nanterre court ruling and the respect of security conditions for the reopening of the closed warehouses.
This decision should not hide the fact that Amazon is committed to conquering the French market, with 8 to 11 additional warehouse and sorting centre projects by the beginning of 2021 : Fournès (Gard), Champigny (Marne), Frescaty (Moselle), Senlis (Oise), whose inauguration is announced for early June 2020, Colombier-Saugnieu (Rhône), Annecy (Haute-Savoie), Petit-Couronne (Seine-Maritime), Dambach-la-Ville (Bas-Rhin), Belfort (Franche-Comté)... not to mention all those we do not yet know.
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Attac and Friends of the Earth call for an immediate halt to these projects, in order to fight climate change, prevent job destruction twice as great as creation, and ensure fiscal justice.
Raphaël Pradeau, Attac spokesman, explains that "Amazon is emblematic of the world before, unsustainable ecologically, fiscally and socially; we welcome the fact that the French justice system has put the health of employees ahead of Amazon's profits."
Alma Dufour, Friends of the Earth campaign manager concludes: " In order to find ways to achieve more sober consumption, based on short circuits and local shops, more respectful of producers, workers and our planet, it is absolutely necessary to stop these projects and start afresh. Then it will be too late."
(Source: Attac France, 24 April 2020)
Amazon is emblematic of the world before, unsustainable ecologically, fiscally and socially; we welcome the fact that the French justice system has put the health of employees ahead of Amazon's profits.
Alma Dufour, Friends of the Earth campaign manager, concludes: "To find ways of consuming more sparingly, based on short circuits and local shops, more respectful of producers, workers and our planet, it is absolutely necessary to stop these projects and start afresh. Then it will be too late."