Amazon bosses appear to be threatening to flood the warehouse with up to 1,000 new staff in a bid to dodge their legal obligations, claims the GMB Union.
GMB union has on Thursday submitted a bid for formal recognition at Amazon Coventry to the Central Arbitration Committee.
The CAC – the Government body responsible for regulating collective bargaining between workers and employers – will now step in after a ten day opportunity for Amazon to resolve recognition voluntarily ended.
With more than 700 GMB members now at the Coventry fulfilment centre, it’s thought the legal threshold for mandatory recognition – 51 per cent of the workforce – has now been passed,
However, workers in the warehouse report bosses have threatened to flood the site with up to 1,000 new staff in a bid to escape their obligations to recognise the union.
The bid will now be considered by the Central Arbitration Committee and would, if successful, be the first-time workers at a UK Amazon site have won recognition of a trade union.
Amanda Gearing, GMB Senior Organiser, said, “Our members have been crystal clear since day one of their industrial action; they expect their employer to talk pay with their union.
“The fact Amazon have flat-out refused opportunities to do just that underlines why GMB members at Amazon are so determined to win this fight.
“Amazon bosses appear to be threatening to flood the warehouse with up to 1,000 new staff in a bid to dodge their legal obligations. They are running scared.
“With industrial action escalating to new fulfilment centres, it’s clear Amazon are facing an historical moment that can no longer ignore.”
