Amazon.com Inc’s investor-led proposal to review its use of plastic won 49 per cent support even as shareholders voted down all the 15 resolutions at the e-commerce giant’s annual general meeting, a regulatory filing showed on Friday.
It was the only proposal that came close to reaching the 51 per cent mark for approval. Investors opposed resolutions that challenged the company’s policies on various issues, including the treatment of workers and use of non-disclosure agreements.
To be sure, about 13 per cent of the company’s voting stock is controlled by Founder and Executive Chairman Jeff Bezos, raising the bar for any effort to win a majority of investor support.
The proposal for a report on whether Amazon cloud, surveillance and other capabilities contribute to human rights violation won 40 per cent support. But an overwhelming 87 per cent voted down a proposal calling Amazon to review worker safety.
Only 39 per cent of votes were in favor of a resolution related to unionization of workers, but 47 per cent backed a report on whether Amazon’s lobbying activities were consistent with the best interest of the shareholders.
A move to review Amazon’s facial recognition technology got 41 per cent votes in favor, while a report for more details on gender and racial pay managed to get support from just 29 per cent of the shareholders.
The resolutions are non-binding, but companies often take some form of action if they receive backing of 30 per cent to 40 per cent of votes cast.
Separately, investors backed the company’s proposal to approve executive compensation, elect director nominees and consider a stock split by a big margin.
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