THE GMB union has accused Amazon of ’dirty tricks’ after it withdrew its bid of recognition at the internet giant’s Coventry warehouse.
The union claims that its membership at the Coventry warehouse had rocketed, meaning GMB members made up more than the 50 per cent needed for statutory union recognition.
It added last year Amazon publicly stated there were 1400 workers at the warehouse, but once GMB made an official application to the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC), the firm claimed to have 2,700 workers.
Amazon Coventry’s GMB members, who have been striking from Monday until today (June 14) claim the warehouse has been flooded with up to 1,000 new starters since the strike action began.
Stuart Richards, GMB Senior Organiser, said: “GMB believes this recruitment drive from Amazon was purely in response to GMB membership growing so close to the threshold for statutory union recognition.
“Amazon has refused to pay workers a decent wage, but is now paying an additional 1,300 workers to try and bust the union.
“We estimate that’s more than £300,000 a week – just to stop workers from having a voice in their workplace.
“This is more than it would cost to pay the original workforce the £15 an hour they were asking for.
“GMB has expressed serious concerns to the CAC both about the accuracy of the information Amazon has given to the committee – and what we believe are immoral anti-union tactics.
“While we have no alternative but to withdraw the application for statutory recognition, we’re not going away.”
An Amazon spokesperson said: “We respect our employees’ rights to join, or not to join, a union.
“We offer competitive pay, comprehensive benefits, and opportunities for career growth, all while working in a safe, modern, work environment. At Amazon, these benefits and opportunities come with the job, as does the ability to communicate directly with the leadership of the company.
“At Amazon, we regularly recruit new team members, across the country and across the year, providing great new career opportunities for thousands of people and to meet customer demand. This year is no different.”
