Luxembourg’s Independent Trade Union Confederation (OGBL) has taken a firm stance against Amazon’s decision to have a select group of employees work on the country’s National Day, observed on June 23. The criticism comes as Amazon required some workers to be present at its Kirchberg site during this public holiday, which coincided with the company’s annual Prime Day operations.
According to Amazon, the employees involved in the holiday work session were volunteers, and the company ensured that their participation adhered to Luxembourg’s labor regulations, with appropriate compensation provided. The online retail giant emphasized that only a limited number of staff were needed to manage the operations on this particular day.
Despite these assurances, the OGBL has maintained that public holidays should generally be reserved for rest, with exceptions only for essential services such as healthcare and emergency response. The union insists that the concept of voluntary work does not absolve employers from their legal obligations concerning holiday pay and compensation.
In light of the situation, the union has urged employees who worked on June 23 and are not part of the management team to scrutinize their payslips thoroughly. The OGBL is advising these workers to ensure that they receive the legally mandated additional compensation for working on a public holiday. Should there be any discrepancies, the union has encouraged affected employees to reach out to their human resources departments or staff representatives for further assistance.