By Charlie Carmichael-
Amazon workers have voted to go on strike for the first time ever in the UK after a ballot at one of the company’s vast warehouses in Coventry.
The walkout is scheduled to occur in January after staff reacted angrily to a 50p per hour pay rise in the summer – equivalent to 5% and well below inflation.
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Over 98% of workers voted to strike on a ballot turnout of more than 63%, the union said.
Amazon has previously said it offered “competitive pay” and gave workers “comprehensive benefits”.
The news comes after Amazon struck a deal with the high street games chain Games Workshop to create a series based on its hit franchise Warhammer, the science-fiction fantasy miniature war game, potentially featuring the former Superman star Henry Cavill, said Amanda Gearing, a senior organiser for the union GMB,
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“They will be the first ever in the UK to take part in a formal strike. They should be applauded for their grit and determination, fighting what’s right in the face of an appallingly hostile environment, said Amanda Gearing, a senior organiser for the union GMB.
“Amazon can afford to do better. It’s not too late to avoid strike action; get round the table to improve the pay and conditions of workers.”
‘It made us feel so unappreciated’: Amazon worker Darren Westwood described the offer, raising pay from £9.96 to £10.56 an hour, as a ‘smack in the teeth’
Amazon said the vote had been held among a tiny proportion of the tens of thousands of workers in the UK and would not disrupt any deliveries.
The ballot was held among around 300 workers in the Coventry warehouse, saw a 63% turnout – so well above the necessary threshold, with 98% voting to strike. Although it is small, it is unprecedented for this tech giant in the UK.
Aggrieved workers said the slowest 25 workers would get a warning known as an “adapt” and could eventually face disciplinary action.
Amazon says it has a strong performance on official data around injuries requiring seven days off work (RIDDORs). They said that showed they had half as many recorded injuries as other companies in the warehousing and transportation sectors.
The local MP in Coventry, Taiwo Owatemi, said that workers at the warehouse had got in touch with her on a number of occasions about conditions.
“Amazon is one of the richest companies in the world and yet they fail to pay their workers what they should fairly be paid, but also these workers are working in poor conditions,” she said.
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