Christmas miracle: 'How easily we are bought by Jeff Bezos' $15 publicity stunt' - Lee Camp

Amazon's minimum wage increase is a cynical attempt to make us view it as a loving generous corporation but it only came about due to pressure from workers and activists, according to 'Redacted Tonight' host Lee Camp.

Ahead of the Christmas shopping rush, retail giant Amazon has announced it is hiking its minimum wage to 15 dollars an hour in a bid to attract new workers. That is almost $2 above the average, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

"Amazon needs to hire a lot of people in a short period of time, and the question is how many people want to do that kind of work? Fifteen dollars an hour will help. We listened to our critics, thought hard about what we wanted to do, and decided we want to lead," said Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos.

President Trump has previously attacked Amazon over its tax set up and criticized its low payments to the US Postal Service which delivers its parcels.

Senator Bernie Sanders who also joined the criticism, now says other companies should follow the lead of Amazon's boss.

RT: How much has the high level criticism forced Amazon's hand here?

Lee Camp: I think they are just incredibly generous. They did it out of the love of their hearts. Jeff Bezos has a ceramic doll of each and every worker that he goes home and prays to each night. No! It was done out of complete publicity stunt because they have been pressured to the point that this helps their bottom line to be viewed positively in terms of how they treat their workers. They are going to pay for this by cutting other benefits, apparently in stock options. It is a completely cynical attempt to get us to start to view Amazon as a loving generous corporation. But they've gotten to where they are by exploiting workers. That is their game. And they do it better than anyone.

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Jeff Bezos makes over $11,000,000 an hour, lowest paid Amazon worker gets $12

RT: You once compared Jeff Bezos to the plague. Have you changed your mind now he's splashed the cash?

LC: That is not true. I did not once compare him to the plague, I compared him many times to the plague. How dare you say it was only once…In order to get to his level, in order to have over $150 billion while so many people are starving around the world, you have to have at least some sort of sociopathic tendencies. That is what our system rewards in these corporate board rooms. It is humans that don't see the humanity of other people and are willing to do things, like Amazon patented the device that straps to the workers so it vibrates telling them they are not going fast enough and could get fired if they are taking too many bathrooms breaks. You have to not understand the humanity of others in order to "succeed" in the way that Jeff Bezos has but calling that success is like saying Jeffrey Dahmer succeeded at eating 10 people's hearts.

RT: Bezos is ranked the richest person on the planet and he has launched a $2 billion charity fund for underprivileged people. And now he is raising salaries to $15 per hour. Are we being too harsh?

LC: I think it is great for these employees to have $15 an hour. But the truth is we as a people are now waiting for the crumbs of corporate America. We are waiting to see what little pieces they'll dish out to us. And that $2 billion that he gives to charity is better than nothing. But we shouldn't have to wait for the crumbs. He should be taxed and Amazon should be taxed – Amazon paid zero in taxes last year. It's disgusting the way these corporations and the richest people – 3 or 5 men – have the same amount as the bottom 50 percent of the world. It is a disgusting scenario in a world that has abundance, a world that could feed everyone, that could house everyone. And we are supposed to celebrate that Jeff Bezos gave what to him is a couple of dollars to help these people that are exploited in our system.

RT: Bernie Sanders has went from criticizing Bezos to  now congratulating him. Are we so easily bought? Are we going to see lots of positive press now about Amazon and Bezos?

LC: Yes, I think we are easily bought. That is one thing you can say for us – we do a great job of being easily bought. I don't know if Sanders still has some complaints. I certainly hope he does. I know that Jeremy Corbyn tweeted that while this is a good thing for these workers to have this $15, it is not something that Amazon just willingly did. It came about because workers organized, they worked together, they spoke up about the situation, about the exploitation. Really, we have workers and activists to thank for Amazon getting pressured enough that they are willing to give their employees a little bit more. Let's hope that keeps going. Let's hope they give these workers some job security for a change, some benefits and stop patenting things like cages to have their workers in while they are on the warehouse floors.

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