Workers across the UK, as part of action by the GMB union, are set to protest the working conditions at Amazon warehouses – with workers in Italy, Germany, Poland, and Spain also protesting. GMB’s General Secretary has said the results are broken bones and workers being knocked unconscious.
GMB, the union that represents Amazon works in the UK, is staging a protest on Black Friday against the « inhuman conditions » that workers are subjugated to in the company’s warehouses.
In a statement by GMB, hundreds are expected to demonstrate across the country at five Amazon warehouses: Rugeley, Milton Keynes, Warrington, Peterborough, and Swansea.
Workers in Italy and Spain are expected to take action on the same day. Sources speaking to Buzzfeed News have apparently said that workers in Polish and German factories will also be protesting.
Earlier this year, a GMB investigation revealed that ambulances were called to Amazon warehouses 600 times during the past three years; members reportedly work in « constant agony, not having time to go to the toilet and a heavily pregnant woman [was] forced to work standing. »
Tim Roache, GMB General Secretary, said that “the conditions our members at Amazon are working under are frankly inhuman. They are breaking bones, being knocked unconscious and being taken away in ambulances.
“We’re standing up and saying enough is enough, these are people making Amazon its money. People with kids, homes, bills to pay – they’re not robots.
“Jeff Bezos is the richest bloke on the planet; he can afford to sort this out. You’d think making the workplace safer so people aren’t carted out of the warehouse in an ambulance is in everyone’s interest, but Amazon seemingly have no will to get round the table with us as the union representing hundreds of their staff.
“Working people and the communities Amazon operates in deserve better than this. That’s what we’re campaigning for. »
This is the latest thorn in the side of the shopping giant; earlier today it was reported that a technical error has revealed the names and email addresses of its customers and recently came under fire for the subsidies given to it by the city of New York after the company decided to put its second headquarters there.
And despite raising the minimum wage of its workers to £9.50 per hour (at the expense of its incentive pay component) and enlisting workers to defend the company on Twitter, stories of the company’s working conditions (and its patents for worker cages) remain a black spot on its reputation.
In a statement, Amazon said that: « Amazon has created in the UK more than 25,000 good jobs with a minimum of £9.50/hour and in the London area, £10.50/hour on top of industry-leading benefits and skills training opportunities. Amazon is a safe place to work, according to the UK Government’s Health and Safety Executive, Amazon has over 40% fewer injuries on average than other transportation and warehousing companies in the UK. We encourage everyone to compare our pay, benefits, and working conditions to others and come see for yourself on one of the public tours we offer every day at our centers across the UK. »
