Amazon takes public stand on minimum wage, climate change

Amazon has unveiled a page on its site titled "Our Positions" where it breaks down the company's stand on issues ranging from climate change to immigration.

"While our positions are carefully considered and deeply held, there is much room for healthy debate and differing opinions," the webpage reads. "We hope being clear about our positions is helpful."

The page is intended to "provide customers, investors, policymakers, employees, and others our views."

The company says that the federal minimum wage in the U.S. is "too low and should be raised," and argued that doing so would "help address growing income inequality" and benefit tens of millions of individuals and families. Amazon, which has aggressively pushed for tax incentives from U.S. municipalities as it has expanded, said the company believes "corporate tax codes should incentivize investment in the economy and job creation."

It also said that "human-induced climate change is real, serious," and that "action is needed from the public and private sectors."

In addition, Amazon said diversity is "good for business," the rights of LGBTQ+ people "must be protected" and that it supports "the rights of immigrants and immigration reform."

On the tech front, the e-commerce giant also said that it believes governments at all levels "should have access to the best technology" and that this is important for the "ongoing safety and security of the country."

In terms of business, Amazon outlined that it believes "counterfeiters should receive stronger penalties under federal law" and "consumer data privacy should be protected under federal law."

Amazon, however, has come under scrutiny from critics over some of these issues in the past.

Last month, over a thousand Amazon workers walked off their jobs in support of the Global Climate Strike, saying in a statement that CEO Jeff Bezos’ climate pledge is “not nearly enough” to tackle the company’s role in climate change.

In June, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY, made headlines after claiming that Amazon is paying its workers “starvation wages,” and that Bezos being a billionaire was predicated on this. Amazon has refuted the congresswoman’s comments.

The following month, in July, some Amazon workers at a suburban Minneapolis plant planned a strike on the company’s Prime Day shopping event. An organizer said their goal was to “put pressure on Amazon to protect us and provide safe, reliable jobs.”