The GMB has withdrawn its bid for union recognition at Amazon after accusing the online giant of “dirty tricks”. The GMB said it had increased the number of its members to 800 at the company’s Coventry warehouse after a series of strikes were held in a dispute over pay.
This meant union membership was more than half the total workforce, a figure needed for statutory recognition, said the union. The GMB claimed that once it made an official application to the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC), Amazon said it had 2,700 workers at the site.
Union members working at the Coventry site claim the warehouse has been “flooded” with up to 1,000 new starters since the strike action began. Amazon said it regularly recruits new staff and this year had been no different.
Further strikes will take place on June 12, 13 and 14. Stuart Richards, GMB senior organiser said: “Earlier this year, in one of the busiest periods for retail, Amazon told people there were around 1,400 workers in Coventry.
“After GMB submitted a request for recognition, Amazon went on a massive recruitment drive. “They now claim to have more than 2,700 workers at the site.
“GMB believes this 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 are 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 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.
“It’s dirty tricks, plain and simple.” An Amazon spokesperson said: “We respect our employees’ rights to join, or not to join, a union.
“We offer competitive pay, comprehensive benefits, 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.
“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.”
