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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Liam Buckler & Alan Jones

Amazon workers walk out in pay row after 'being offered pay rise of just 35p an hour'

Amazon warehouse workers have walked out over a pay row after Union bosses confirmed staff were offered a paltry 35p pay rise.

The GMB union said hundreds of employees in Tilbury, Essex, stopped work on Thursday after being given a measly 35p an hour pay rise.

In an email to staff at their Essex warehouse, Amazon workers were informed their starting hourly rate would increase from £11.10 to £11.45 - as the tech company made over £23billion in UK sales.

Union bosses said workers are seeking a £2-an-hour rise to better match the demands of their job and help cope with the cost-of-living crisis.

It comes after the central bank hiked the Bank's base interest rate to 1.75% from 1.25% - the biggest single rise since 1995.

Hundreds of employees from the Amazon Tilbury fulfilment centre went on strike over a pay row (Getty Images)

The grim economic conditions will see real household incomes drop for two years in a row, the first time this has happened since records began in the 1960s.

They will drop by 1.5 per cent this year and 2.25 per cent next.

Steve Garelick, GMB regional organiser, said: "Amazon is one of the most profitable companies on the planet. With household costs spiralling, the least they can do is offer decent pay.

"Amazon continues to reject working with trade unions to deliver better working conditions and fair pay.

"Their repeated use of short-term contracts is designed to undermine workers' rights.

"The image the company likes to project, and the reality for their workers, could not be more different.

Union bosses said workers are seeking a £2-an-hour rise to better match the demands of their job (ExpressStar)

"They need to drastically improve pay and working conditions."

The US tech giant, which employs around 33,000 people, has seen workers put under pressure to deliver targets at the fulfilment centre.

As last month warehouse workers and drivers at Amazon wrote an open letter to the company to stop them working at an 'inhuman pace'.

Targets are placed on warehouse workers - such as Amazon Prime Day and Black Friday - with the workers under constant pressure.

An Amazon spokesman said: "Starting pay for Amazon employees will be increasing to a minimum of between £10.50 and £11.45 per hour, depending on location.

"This is for all full-time, part-time, seasonal, and temporary roles in the UK.

"In addition to this competitive pay, employees are offered a comprehensive benefits package that includes private medical insurance, life assurance, income protection, subsidised meals.

"And an employee discount among others, which combined are worth thousands annually, as well as a company pension plan."

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