Amazon has decided to extend the closure of its sites on French territory by two days, that is to say until Wednesday inclusive. "We remain perplexed by the decision of the court of Nanterre made last week and we look forward to hearing our appeal. We temporarily maintain the suspension of the activity of our French distribution centers," said the company in a declaration.
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Meeting with the social and economic committee scheduled for Monday
The approximately 10,000 employees and temporary workers in six warehouses in France are therefore expected to stay at home until the reopening. They have been informed of the extension and a meeting with the Social and Economic Committee (CSE) is scheduled to take place on Monday. They will remain 100% paid, said the company, which has not applied for short-time working. Consumers retain the option of using the Amazon platform to purchase and have products delivered from abroad.
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The court of Nanterre had ordered on April 14 to Amazon France to limit its activities to essential products (hygiene, medical products and food), under penalty of a fine of one million euros per violation found. Seized by a union, the court had put forward several problems, including the turnstiles at the entrance of sites that create gatherings of employees violating social distancing measures, ditto in the locker room, or the passage of packages of an employee to another who may transmit the coronavirus.
7.73 billion euros of annual business volume in France
Judging the distinction between the types of products ambiguous and faced with the risk of being fined, Amazon had then announced to temporarily close its distribution sites until Monday inclusive, and take the opportunity to clean its warehouses and conduct an assessment of risks facing Covid-19.
According to the Foxintelligence barometer of online commerce, Amazon's market share in this sector in France stabilized at 36% during the fourth week of confinement. Its annual business volume in the country reaches 7.73 billion euros, according to panelist Kantar.