As the online giant faces its first UK strike, staff in Coventry tell the BBC why they are walking out.
By Dearbail Jordan & Zoe ConwayAmazon workers will stage the first-ever UK strike against the online giant on Wednesday in a protest over pay.
But two Amazon workers, who are members of the GMB, said the robots in the warehouse "are treated better than us". Mr Hilton, who has diabetes, said it is not always possible to find toilets close by in the building and the process of locating one and returning can sometimes take upwards of 15 minutes.They said that managers track staff performance and time that is not spent scanning items is accrued.
A spokesman for Amazon said: "Performance is only measured when an employee is at their station and logged in to do their job.But Mr Westwood and Mr Hilton said working conditions are taking a toll on their colleagues, some of whom are working 60-hour weeks to keep up with the cost of living. "These people had worked two years through the pandemic, that had seen Amazon's shares go through the roof, they had seen the profits just become unimaginable," he said.
But Mr Westwood said the numbers were "brilliant". Amazon does not recognise unions but, according to the GMB there are members scattered throughout the UK in varying numbers.More than half of the 8,000 workers at a warehouse on Staten Island, New York, voted to join the Amazon Labor Union which has now been officially certified. However, the company has vowed to appeal the certification.
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