Amazon warehouse workers in Coventry to vote on trade union recognition!
Workers at Amazon UK’s Coventry warehouse are one step closer to forcing the company to recognise their trade union.
The government body that oversees such applications, the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC), has ruled in favour of the GMB trade union’s application for a union recognition vote to take place.
This is big news – and paves the way for a binding vote which could force Amazon to recognise the trade union.
If the vote is won, it will be a huge boost to the workers’ fight for decent pay and conditions. Amazon is notorious for its union-busting activities around the world. This vote would force it to negotiate formally with the union on issues including pay, hours, and holidays.
The decision by the CAC comes after years of organising and industrial action by the Coventry workers and the GMB. Foxglove has been supporting them with legal support throughout this process, and by raising over £10,000 for the workers’ strike fund.
The next step is for the CAC to appoint an independent organisation to run the legally binding vote of workers. We expect the ballot timetable to be announced soon.
Given their union-busting track record, it’s fair to assume Amazon will continue to pull every dirty trick in the book to defeat this vote and keep unions out of their UK warehouses. We’ll need to continue to support the workers in every way we can. We’ll let you know how you can help.
This is huge for the workers in Coventry, but it’s also a big moment for workers on the front line of exploitation by Big Tech companies all around the world. This could be the first Amazon warehouse to unionise anywhere outside the USA! Winning this vote will send ripples around the world.
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