Around 1,400 workers at an Amazon warehouse in Coventry, central England, went on strike on Tuesday and plan to do so again on Wednesday, in the context of a long-running dispute over wages and union recognition, the union reported. GMB.
In the last two years, labor disputes have intensified in the United Kingdom, with employees demanding salary increases to counteract high inflation.
Amazon has 75,000 employees in the UK, making the American retail giant one of the top ten employers in the British private sector.
Amazon prefers to resolve issues directly with employees rather than through unions.
Coventry’s latest strike comes a week after GMB members at the Amazon site submitted an application for mandatory union recognition to the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC).
If the CAC, an independent body with statutory powers, determines that more than half of Amazon workers in Coventry are members of the GMB union, Amazon would have to formally recognize the union, a first for the company in Europe.
If the CAC rules that the union has more than 40 percent of the workforce, but less than 50 percent, a vote will be held on union recognition.
Workers at the Coventry plant first went on strike in January last year.
The company has been affected by unionization efforts around the world. In 2022, workers at an Amazon warehouse in New York voted to form the company’s first union.
The workers have left the US retail giant’s premises in Coventry GMT and will once again put down their tools with plans to repeat the strike at the same time on Wednesday. Employees at Amazon’s Birmingham office plan to strike on March 27 and 28.
Regarding pay, an Amazon spokesperson said the company regularly reviews pay “to ensure we offer competitive salaries and benefits.”
The spokesperson noted that their starting minimum wage will increase, in April, to 12.30 pounds ($15.58) and 13 pounds per hour depending on location, an increase of 20% in two years and 50% since 2018.
2024-03-19 13:18:31
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