Amazon CEO Promises Workplace Improvements in First Shareholder Letter Since Taking Office

Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon
Photo by Reuters

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, has promised to improve the work environment to ensure the safety of employees.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on the 14th (local time), CEO Jassy stated this in his first shareholder letter since taking office. This was in response to the Strategic Organizing Center (SOC), a coalition of U.S. labor unions, reporting that the incidence of workplace illness and injury among Amazon employees is about twice as high as that of other companies.

CEO Jassy argued that "there are sometimes some misunderstandings," claiming that Amazon's injury rate is at the industry average level. He explained that the warehouse industry typically has an injury rate of 5.5 per 100 workers (as of 2020), while Amazon's rate is 6.4 per 100 workers. Amazon employs about one-third of the warehouse workers in the U.S.

Jassy said, "In the early days of my tenure, I spent a lot of time with the safety team at logistics packaging centers trying to find a quick solution to reduce this," but added, "In the end, I couldn't find one." He went on to say that the company has identified the top 100 grievances of employees and is working to resolve them, pledging to strive to create a safer work environment.

In the letter, CEO Jassy mentioned that Amazon is facing difficulties due to rising costs caused by labor shortages and supply chain issues. He also expressed his intention to continue innovating Amazon. However, Jassy did not express a position on union formation in the letter.

Instead, CEO Jassy appeared on CNBC that day and said, "Joining a union is the employees' choice," adding, "From our perspective, we think it is better if they do not join." He also pointed out that unionization efforts slow down the company's efforts to improve the work environment.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.