Bezos thanks workers for space trip

The world’s richest man wanted to say thanks to the people who made his brief trip into space yesterday possible.

But for some, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ expression of gratitude went over like a lead rocket.

‘‘I want to thank every Amazon employee, and every Amazon customer because you guys paid for all this,’’ the 57-yearold Bezos said during a news conference after becoming the second billionaire in just over a week to ride in his own spacecraft. The New Shepard rocket is named after Mercury astronaut Alan Shepard, the first American to go to space.

Bezos built Amazon into a shopping and entertainment behemoth but has faced increasing activism within his own workforce and pressure from critics to improve working conditions. Labour groups and Amazon workers have claimed that the company does not offer its hourly employees enough break times, puts too much reliance on rigid productivity metrics and has unsafe working conditions. An effort to unionise workers at an Amazon warehouse in Alabama failed earlier this year.

Robert Reich, a professor of public policy at University of California, Berkeley, wrote on Twitter that Bezos had crushed unionising attempts for decades. ‘‘Amazon workers don’t need Bezos to thank them. They need him to stop union busting – and pay them what they deserve.’’

Bezos stepped down as Amazon CEO in July, allowing him more time for his space exploration company Blue Origin. He has said he finances the rocket company by selling $1 billion (NZ$1.4b) in Amazon stock each year.

Nevertheless, Rep Earl Blumenauer, who is on the taxwriting Ways and Means Committee, yesterday proposed legislation that would tax space travel for non-scientific research purposes. ‘‘Just as normal Americans pay taxes when they buy airline tickets, billionaires who fly into space to produce nothing of scientific value should do the same, and then some.’’

Bezos blasted into space on his rocket company’s first flight with people on board. He was accompanied by a hand-picked group: his brother, Mark, 50; the company’s first paying customer, Oliver Daemen, an 18-year-old from the Netherlands; and Wally Funk, an 82-year-old aviation pioneer from Texas – the youngest and oldest to ever fly in space. –

AP Mark Bezos, left, looks on as Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and space tourism company Blue Origin, puts goggles over his eyes that belonged to aviator Amelia Earhart during a post launch news briefing from its spaceport near Van Horn, Texas, yesterday. The goggles were carried aboard the New Shepard during yesterday’s launch.