Amazon lobbyists will be banned from EU parliament

Refusal to engage over employee conditions prompts drastic action

The European parliament confirmed yesterday that the access badges of Amazon lobbyists would be withdrawn.

A group of MEPs called for the measure in frustration at what they claim is Amazon's refusal to engage with the institution on the question of the rights of those labouring in Amazon warehouses.

According to a report in Politico, Amazon representatives were invited to attend an employment committee hearing on "Working Conditions in Amazon Warehouses" on January 23rd, but failed to attend, claiming insufficient notice had been provided.

Subsequently, the committee wrote a letter to Parliament President Roberta Metsola asking that the company's lobbyists be denied access to the institution.

The letter set out the case that the committee considered it unreasonable for members to be lobbied by Amazon while at the same time being deprived by the same organisation of the right to represent the interests of European citizens and investigate claims of breaches of the rights of those same citizens.

Amazon has responded robustly to this action by the EU parliament.

"We are very disappointed with this decision, as we want to engage constructively with policymakers," read a statement posted yesterday, adding that the company had "on several occasions invited them to visit" its facilities.

The statement refutes the committees assertion that a visit to a German premises was refused in December. The dates proposed by the committee fell during the peak season of December, and the statement claims that alternative dates after the seasonal peak were offered.

The statement continued: "We remain ready to host the Committee at our facilities, including in Germany, Poland or elsewhere in the EU, should it accept our invitation."

The public disagreement can be viewed against the backdrop of the ongoing, and escalating attempts to regulate Big Tech in the EU and in the US - attempts which have become more urgent in the face of developments in generative AI.

Also escalating are tensions between warehouse workers and bosses across Amazon fulfilment centres in the UK, Europe and US. Strikes took place last year during Black Friday in various EU locations, and workers at UK fulfilment centres staged walk-outs in January and February this year in pursuit of higher hourly pay rates and greater union recognition.