Amazon workers vote to continue pay strikes for another six months

The GMB union said its members based at the company’s site in Coventry backed more strikes by 99% on a turnout of 54%.

Workers at online giant Amazon have voted to continue their campaign of industrial action for another six months in a dispute over pay (Phil Barnett/PA) (PA Wire)

Workers at online giant Amazon have voted to continue their campaign of industrial action for another six months in a dispute over pay.

The GMB said its members based at the company’s site in Coventry backed more strikes by 99% on a turnout of 54%.

The union said almost 800 Amazon workers were on strike on Wednesday, the 19th day of industrial action since the dispute flared.

Some GMB members met MPs in Parliament to seek support for their campaign.

Senior organiser Amanda Gearing said: “The vote for six more months of strike action at Amazon Coventry shows these workers are in it for the long haul.

“These workers are angry, they know their rights and they will not go away.”

An Amazon spokesperson said: “We regularly review our pay to ensure we offer competitive wages and benefits.

“Over the past year, our minimum pay has risen by 10% and by more than 37% since 2018.

“We also work hard to provide great benefits, a positive work environment and excellent career opportunities. These are just some of the reasons people want to come and work at Amazon, whether it’s their first job, a seasonal role or an opportunity for them to advance their career.”

The GMB also held strike ballots among its members working for Amazon in Mansfield and Rugeley.

Neither made the legal threshold but the union said the Rugeley ballot only missed out by four votes.

Amanda Gearing, GMB senior organiser, said: “These were some of first ever ballots for industrial action at Amazon sites in the UK, but in the case of Rugeley, we missed the punishing legal threshold by four votes.

“Amazon workers are angry. This is just a stepping stone on their journey in the fight for £15 an hour.

“GMB is now talking with activists on sites to set out how we take that fight forward.”

– Unions involved in industrial disputes have to hold a fresh ballot every six months to ask their members if they want to continue taking action.