The GMB Union say that they’ve now recruited over 700 out of the 1,300 workers at Amazon Coventry which likely forces Amazon to recognise the Union. Normally the threshold for recognition is 50% of workers.
The main union demand is for £15 per hour pay, Amazon have been ratcheting up pay in recent years which now stands at around £11-£12 per hour for new starters. That means the gap between what the union demand and what Amazon actually pays has narrowed significantly from when the Union demanded an almost 50% pay increase to their target of £15. Amazon say pay has increased 10% in the last 7 months and 37% since 2018.
The protests over pay only started in August last year when around 30 workers at the Amazon Coventry location were members of the GMB. It’s been a magnificent effort to recruit 700 members in a relatively short time, but the Union still worry that Amazon could simply flood the location with more workers meaning that 700 no longer represent a majority of the workforce.
While this is just one Amazon location, and one that doesn’t deliver directly to consumers limiting strike action to being a nuisance rather than one the public will notice, the Union is quietly recruiting members at multiple depots and if they are recognised at Amazon Coventry it could open the flood gates to more Amazon locations becoming unionised.
The reality for retailers selling on Amazon is that in the short term this is unlikely to impact you. Even if FBA warehouses are impacted by strike action, it’s likely that Amazon have split your stock across multiple locations. Until there are nationwide strikes impacted all Fulfilment Centres Amazon will just carry on serving their customers in much the same way as they do in Germany when the Ver.di union strikes take place.
