'Game-Changing Moment' as Workers at Second UK Amazon Facility Vote to Strike
"They've thrown everything at stopping this, but workers at Amazon Rugeley have organized and delivered a clear message that they demand fair pay and union rights," said a GMB senior organizer.
The United Kingdom's GMB trade union announced Monday that workers at an Amazon warehouse in Rugeley plan to strike after months of walkouts by employees at a company facility in the English city of Coventry.
The union—which has more than a half-million members across the country—said that organizers will now plan strike dates for over 100 workers in Rugeley after 86% of those who voted supported the action.
Calling the development "a game-changing moment in the campaign to force Amazon to treat its workers like human beings," GMB senior organizer Stuart Richards said in a statement that "they've thrown everything at stopping this, but workers at Amazon Rugeley have organized and delivered a clear message that they demand fair pay and union rights."
"It's staggering that Amazon are still trousering millions from the British taxpayer whilst treating U.K. workers with disdain."
Employees and organizers have seen one of the world's wealthiest companies "offering U.K. workers a pay rise of pennies and work conditions fit only for the history books," Richards said. "It's staggering that Amazon are still trousering millions from the British taxpayer whilst treating U.K. workers with disdain."
"As GMB members in Rugeley plan for the picket line, it's time for politicians and decision-makers to finally confront the facts," the organizer asserted. "If Amazon workers are being forced to the breadline by low pay, then why should the public purse be open to... Amazon?"
In a Monday statement, Amazon told BBC News that "we regularly review our pay to ensure we offer competitive wages and benefits... In less than a year, our minimum pay has risen by 10% and by more than 37% since 2018."
Rugeley workers' strike plans follow Amazon confirming last month that the fulfillment center is set to close and staff will be offered jobs at the company's new £500 million ($654 million) facility in Sutton Coldfield, due to open in October with 1,400 employees.
Monday's announcement also follows hundreds of workers in Coventry joining a walkout last week that coincided with Amazon's Prime Day sales event, which brought the total strike days to 22 since January.
After that three-day walkout, GMB revealed that union membership has hit 1,000 at the Coventry location. Senior organizer Rachel Fagan said that "it was amazing to see so many Amazon workers over the course of Prime Week, with queues around the corner to sign up and join the campaign."
"This is a clear message for Amazon top brass, in Coventry and around the world," Fagan added. "GMB members are escalating their campaign for union rights and £15 [$19.62]. They will not be beaten [by] the dirty tricks of Amazon. They're fighting for their future. Amazon's poverty pay and poor working conditions means that so many workers are struggling to pay the bills and raise their families."
The Seattle-based company—founded by Jeff Bezos, one of the richest people in the world—has also come under fire for pay and working conditions as well as its response to union organizing across the globe, including throughout the United States.
(Photo: Extinction Rebellion)
(Photo: Extinction Rebellion)