As pandemic profits soar, it’s time big tech like Amazon keep their promise to give back to society

Not one of the tech giants is among the UK’s top 75 social mobility employers. That is hardly consistent with the rhetoric about ushering in a new era of responsible capitalism, says Alan Milburn

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos committed the company to creating an economy for all. (Getty Images)

The profits of companies like Alphabet and Amazon have boomed during the pandemic. As youth unemployment soars, they must not renege on their promise to society.

Covid-19 has not only been a health disaster, it has sounded the death knell for many businesses. But not all. For some, it has proved to be good business. The tech giants have seen profits soar during Covid-19: the combined post-tax profits of Alphabet, Amazon, Apple and Facebook have grown by a whopping $39bn (£29.1).

The Digital Services Tax is a missed opportunity to capitalise on this windfall by fairly taxing excess profits. Poor policy design means that it is often only small traders selling through platforms like Amazon that will pay more, rather than the tech giants themselves. In the absence of money going to HM Treasury, however, big tech could find other ways of paying back to wider society. Supporting the government’s stalled levelling-up agenda would be a good starting point. Yet the publication today of the UK Social Mobility Employer Index indicates that not one of the tech giants is among the country’s top 75 social mobility employers. Indeed, none of the 119 entries – collectively employing just under 1 million people in the UK – came from the technology sector.