How the French have risen against a huge Amazonian logistics center | Technology

FOr Gilles Renevier, veterinarian of a village south-east of Lyon, opposing Amazon's plan to build a large logistics center in his area was "common sense".

The American firm was to begin construction of a large packaging and delivery center next to Lyon airport in south-east France this year, but two local badociations filed lawsuits to stop it. construction.

They warn that there would be a damaging increase in road traffic and pollution with more than 1,000 trucks and 4,500 light vehicle movements a day, and that there would be no planning adequate public transport to compensate for it in an area already saturated with traffic. They also argue that the construction would destroy 33 protected animal species without justification.

"We will not back down," Renevier said. "This project is an outdated way of doing things. We need to think about how to live better in a less polluted society. "

There has been a rise in anti-Amazon sentiment among French activists, reinforced by yellow vests demonstrations against the company. French consumers spent more than 38 billion euros online last year and Amazon is the market leader. However, a series of blockades of yellow vests outside of Amazon's warehouses has increased controversy over the tax benefits of global technology companies.

When the anti-government Yellow Vest protesters began their national tax revolt in November, it targeted the state rather than the companies. Demonstrations took place in employment offices and attacks on local government buildings.

Over the past four months, activists have sporadically blocked several Amazonian depots and buildings, from Toulouse in the south-west to Montélimar in the south-east and Douai in the north, before being transferred by the riot police.

A young demonstrator Douai, yellow vest, said: "The tax in France is not fair. Many of my clbadmates work at Amazon. How is it that low-paid workers, who work all day in an Amazon warehouse, are forced to pay all their taxes and that big business can find a way to pay as little tax as possible? "

Raymond Stocco, organizer yellow vests in Toulouse, said: "The anger is very real. Workers are heavily taxed. Why should big groups – Google, Amazon – be able to get around it? "

Amazon said that she had invested 2 billion euros in France since 2010 and that she employed 7,500 permanent workers at 20 sites. "We pay all taxes required in France, as in all countries where we operate," said the company.

In the past, Amazon has been criticized for downplaying its tax bill in France and other European countries by channeling sales via Luxembourg, which offers tax benefits to foreign companies based there. Amazon said it now has a branch in France and hosts retail sales, expenses and profits in the country.

The French government, seeking to calm the movement of yellow vests, announced that it would pursue alone with a new tax on large high-tech companies, including Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon.

But the tension rose after a handful of Amazon staff members claimed to have been fired because they had voiced their support for the yellow vests movement on social media.

An Orleans Labor Court is investigating the case of an unfair dismissal by an employee of about thirty years who had been working for five years preparing packages delivered by Amazon to a warehouse in Saran. He lost his job three weeks after writing an article on Facebook in November, using the term "us yellow vests" and suggesting blocking a deposit. At a court hearing this month, Amazon refused to return his work. The case continues.

"It's a matter of public liberty," said Avi Bitton, the worker's lawyer. "Strike is a right in the French constitution, just like freedom of expression. There was a national yellow vest movement, my client wanted to participate. Is he supposed to remain silent about this national movement simply because he is an employee of Amazon? "

Khaled Bouchajra, a left-wing CGT unionist on the Saran Amazon website, said the unions were strong and respected within the company, but any conflict between workers and Amazon was viewed by the French public as "rich against poor".

The mood among the demonstrators of yellow vests worsened when it became clear that Amazon's sales could benefit from the impact of their Saturday events on retailers in supermarkets as Christmas approaches.

But in reality, although French online sales increased at the end of last year, they were not as high as expected.

On the issue of personnel layoffs, Amazon said the yellow vest movement was not related to Amazon. The company said, "That's why a call was launched to block [a site] harming your business on social networks does not correspond to the exercise of the right to strike, but on the contrary to a serious violation of the worker's obligations. "

The company did not comment on the opposition to the new logistics center in Lyon. Pierre Marmonier, a local mayor who approved the building permit, said: "I understand that the idea of ​​Amazon scares people, it can be complicated. But all the questions I asked Amazon have been answered and rebadured me.

Evelyne Lavezzari, a local resident whose badociation Acenas, launched the action to put an end to construction work on the site, said: "This project is detrimental to us locally, we had to take a stand and we will continue . "