Key facts
- Amazon has signed a national agreement with Italian unions covering leave, employee rights, and video surveillance.
- The deal specifies that video surveillance images cannot be used for disciplinary purposes.
- Employees are now granted the right to take parental leave in increments as small as one hour.
- The agreement includes gradual pay and bonus increases over three years for drivers.
- The full-time workweek will be reduced from 42 to 41 hours by 2027.
- Long-term contract coverage will expand from 60% to 65%, enhancing job security.
Amazon has reached a comprehensive agreement with Italian unions that addresses workers' rights, leave policies, and the use of video surveillance across 57 of its sites in the country. The deal, hailed by unions as a significant first for Amazon globally, was announced on Wednesday and builds upon an initial protocol signed in 2021.
The agreement stipulates that images captured by video surveillance cannot be utilized for disciplinary actions against employees. Furthermore, workers have secured the right to take parental leave in increments as small as one hour, enhancing flexibility for work-life balance.
This national accord follows a series of impactful labor actions by Amazon workers in Italy. Notably, a nationwide strike on April 18, 2025, saw an 85% participation rate, leading to the shutdown of the entire delivery network. The resulting agreement includes provisions for gradual pay and bonus increases over three years, a reduction in the full-time workweek from 42 to 41 hours by 2027, and an expansion of long-term contract coverage from 60% to 65%, thereby improving job security. Workers also gained the right to cease work during extreme weather events and secured voluntary provisions for holiday work.
While nearly 90% of workers voted in favor of the new terms, some expressed frustration that the gains were modest and that some improvements would take time to be realized. Despite these concerns, the Italian Amazon workers are considered to be ahead of their global counterparts in terms of contractual rights.