Amazon workers strike: UK to witness the 1st ever strike action against Amazon

The US is not the only country that is witnessing momentum against Amazon. According to a report by BBC news, workers at an Amazon warehouse in Coventry, United Kingdom, are set to go on strike later this month in what will be the first-ever strike by Amazon employees in the United Kingdom. The workers, who are members of the GMB union, voted in favor of industrial action over a pay dispute. 

According to GMB senior organiser Amanda Gearing mentioned in the BBC report, the workers are making history with their decision to strike. "They've shown they're willing to put themselves on the line to fight for what's right," Gearing said. "But people working for one of the most valuable companies in the world shouldn't have to threaten strike action just to win a wage they can live on".

Why are the workers protesting?

The union claims that the workers are protesting a 50p per hour pay offer, while Amazon has stated that pay rates at the Coventry warehouse start at a minimum of between £10.50 and £11.45 per hour, representing a 29% increase in the minimum hourly wage paid to Amazon employees since 2018. In addition, the company has said that employees are offered comprehensive benefits worth thousands of pounds, including private medical insurance, life assurance, subsidised meals, and an employee discount.

Despite the pay increase and benefits offered by Amazon, Gearing is urging the company's UK bosses to give workers "a proper pay rise and avoid industrial action." The strike is scheduled to take place on January 25th. The decision to strike by Amazon workers in the UK comes as the company faces increasing criticism over its treatment of its employees around the world. In recent years, the company has been accused of poor working conditions, low pay, and a lack of job security at its warehouses. The Coventry strike will be closely watched by workers and labor advocates as a potential harbinger of further industrial action at Amazon and other major corporations.

Meanwhile, Amazon has decided to conduct more job cuts. Amazon employees reportedly received an email from CEO Andy Jassy titled 'update from CEO Andy Jassy on role eliminations' which informed the workers that they should expect more job cuts. Amazon is going to slash 18,000 more jobs, at a time when many people are already struggling to make ends meet due to inflation. 

Catching a glimpse of Amazon's behaviour 

Does the prompt delivery of Amazon have a human cost? More importantly, is that cost acceptable? Larry Virden, an Amazon worker in Edwardsville, Illinois, was killed in a warehouse collapse in 2021 after being told to stay on the job as a tornado approached, according to his girlfriend, Cherie Jones. Jones told the New York Post that Virden had texted her 16 minutes before the tornado hit, giving him enough time to return to their home in Collinsville, which is just a 13-minute drive away. "I messaged him and that was the last text message I got from him," Jones said. "I told him where we live, it was only lightning at the time. After that, I got nothing from him." Virden was one of six Amazon employees who died in the collapse.

This incident is just one example of the dangerous conditions faced by Amazon workers. As per a report from the Guardian, in September 2019, Billy Foister, a 48-year-old Amazon warehouse worker, suffered a heart attack on the job and died. His brother, Edward Foister, claimed that an Amazon HR representative told him at the hospital that Foister had lain on the floor for 20 minutes before being treated by Amazon's internal safety responders. "How can you not see a 6ft 3in man laying on the ground and not help him within 20 minutes? A couple of days before, he put the wrong product in the wrong bin, and within two minutes management saw it on camera and came down to talk to him about it," Edward Foister said.

In the US, workers transporting the goods have to urinate in a bottle and defecate in a bag, because of the intense pressure on them. Amazon workers have consistently faced dangerous conditions on the job, ranging from a lack of protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic to injury rates twice as high as the industry standard to warehouses catching fire. These hazards have resulted in fatal consequences for some workers.

The supply chain for Amazon is not that different. The company has been criticized for selling clothing from Bangladeshi factories that have been blacklisted due to dangerous conditions, including the Rana Plaza garment factory collapse. Despite calls from workers, trade unions, and activists, Amazon has refused to sign the legally binding Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh, as per a report from Jacobin. The company's practices have drawn widespread criticism and outrage, with calls for improved working conditions and greater accountability for the safety of all those in the Amazon supply chain.

Amazon's impact

Journalist Alec MacGillis has travelled across the US, to examine the impact of Amazon. In his book, "Fulfillment: Winning and Losing in One-Click America," journalist Alec MacGillis examines the impact of Amazon on communities across the United States. From El Paso to Seattle, MacGillis meets with Amazon employees, local officials, and activists to explore the consequences of the company's rapid expansion. According to MacGillis, Amazon's success has come at a high cost. He cites the depletion of government treasuries due to tax concessions to the company, poor working conditions in fulfillment centers, anti-union policies leading to the firing of employees, bankruptcy of small retail businesses struggling to compete with online prices, and a rise in the opioid epidemic as workers cope with the demands of their jobs.

However, MacGillis also situates Amazon within a larger trend of increasing inequality in the United States. He points out that in 2019, more than 70% of venture capital went to just three states: California, New York, and Massachusetts. The concentration of profits and growth opportunities in a small number of dominant firms has resulted in a "winner-take-all economy" and "winner-take-all places," further exacerbating the divide between wealthy and impoverished states.