Amazon workers staged a Black Friday protest in Joliet

JOLIET, IL. This year on Black Friday, Amazon employees and activists held protests and strikes in 40 countries, including at the Amazon Fulfillment Center in Joliet.

The goal of the participants is to draw attention to the problems of workers on one of the biggest shopping days of the year.

“I have been working at Amazon for three years. I think it’s time they start paying their workers, they start paying for the damage they’re doing to the climate, and they start paying their fair share of taxes,” said Drew Duzinskas, a stocker at Amazon’s Joliet facility. “Especially when you consider how much tax they get to open a store.”

In Joliet, workers are demanding a fair wage increase to match the more than $120 billion Amazon brought in in the second quarter of this year.

“Union workers and union dues help sustain generational wealth for black and brown and two-bedroom communities, and that’s a problem,” said Christine Bright of the Will County Progressive Party. “It’s not a living wage at all.”

An Amazon spokesman said in a statement that it is investing heavily in the areas where the exits are taking place and that the company continues to offer competitive wages and benefits.