Amazon workers hold walkouts on Prime Day in Georgia and Illinois
Protests took place at four Amazon warehouses
Amazon workers staged walkouts at four of the e-commerce giant's warehouses Tuesday, making demands of the company as it launched its second Prime Day of the year.
The first protest took place in the morning at the retailer's Stone Mountain, Georgia, site, where workers marched outside with signs in front of the building.
Amazon employees have held previous walkouts this year at the same location in an ongoing campaign demanding the company pay them a minimum of $24 per hour.
An Amazon spokesperson told FOX Business roughly 15 employees took part in the demonstration outside Atlanta, and another 15 or so workers held a walkout at a warehouse in Buford, Georgia.
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Amazon workers at two distribution centers in Joliet, Illinois, also held walkouts over their lunch breaks on Tuesday. The facilities are located across the street from one another, and a total of 14 workers took part in that protest.
According to a reporter from the City Bureau, the employees in Joliet were joined by Black Workers Matter Chicago, the Teamsters union and other groups. At one point, the demonstrators blocked trucks from entering the facility.
When contacted for reaction to the walkouts, Amazon spokesperson Barbara Agrait told FOX Business in an emailed statement, "We value employee feedback and are always listening. We’re investing $1 billion over the next year to permanently raise hourly pay for frontline employees, and we’ll continue looking for ways to improve their experience."
The small protests in Georgia and Illinois on Tuesday appear to be isolated. To put the demonstrations in perspective, as of June Amazon reported a total of 1.523 million full- and part-time employees globally, excluding contractors and temporary personnel.
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Amazon says average pay for the company's front-line workers is more than $19 per hour, with employees earning between $16 and $26 per hour depending on their position and location.
Full-time Amazon employees receive a benefits package that includes health, vision and dental insurance, a 401(k) with a 50% company match and other benefits.
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The company has been hit with several protests at facilities in the past. Most recently, roughly 100 Amazon workers from a warehouse in Staten Island, New York, held a sit-down protest, refusing to work and demanding to be sent home with pay following a trash compactor fire at the facility.
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Union organizers said at least 50 workers were suspended with pay over the incident while Amazon investigates.
The company said in a statement that the New York Fire Department (FDNY) deemed that the building was safe following the fire, and a majority of employees returned to work following the incident.
FOX Business' Lucas Manfredi contributed to this report.