Jeff Bezos Thanks Amazon Employees For Funding Space Trip, Prompting Backlash

"I want to thank every Amazon employee and every Amazon customer because you guys paid for all of this," Jeff Bezos said after his spaceflight.

Jeff Bezos, the world's richest man, has thanked his employees and customers for 'paying' for his trip to space. The Amazon CEO successfully completed an 11-minute ride to the cusp of outer space on Tuesday aboard a rocket built by his company Blue Origin. After his historic space flight, Mr Bezos, wearing a blue space suit and a cowboy hat, attended a news conference where some of his remarks drew swift backlash on social media.  Yes, Amazon workers did pay for this - with lower wages, union busting, a frenzied and inhumane workplace, and delivery drivers not having health insurance during a pandemic.And Amazon customers are paying for it with Amazon abusing their market power to hurt small business. https://t.co/7qMgpe8u0M Jeff Bezos forgot to thank all the hardworking Americans who actually paid taxes to keep this country running while he and Amazon paid nothing. https://t.co/tjOeCWbUA8 Jeff Bezos's space flight lasted 11 minutesDuring the pandemic, every 11 minutes, he got about 1.6 million dollars richerAll while, Justin Trudeau allowed Amazon to pay $0 in taxesIt's time the ultra-rich pay their fair sharehttps://t.co/uhILFSSfxw Tone deaf doesn't begin to describe this @JeffBezos quote.I'm sure your workers who get blocked from unionizing at every turn are just giddy with excitement about your neato field trip to outer space that they subsidized. https://t.co/pmgCUIp7kp Jeff Bezos was in space for 5 minutes—or as its known at the Amazon warehouse, your allotted break time for a 16-hour day When Jeff Bezos says hes wants "to thank every Amazon employee and every Amazon customer because you guys paid for all of this” I don't think that sounds as good as he thinks it does. "I also want to thank every Amazon employee and every Amazon customer because you guys paid for all of this," Mr Bezos said during the news conference after his space flight. "So seriously, for every Amazon customer out there, and every Amazon employee, thank you from the bottom of my heart, very much. It's very appreciated." Though his comment seems to have been in jest, many on Twitter were less than amused. Critics pointed out that Amazon workers have repeatedly complained of dangerous work conditions and grueling hours that force them to skip meals and even bathroom breaks, while the company's founder - Mr Bezos - is the world's richest person.