Amazon workers in the UK are planning more strikes as they called a 50p-an-hour hike to their hourly minimum wage for warehouse workers to £11 an “insult”.
The company said the wage increase announced on Wednesday, which will be implemented this weekend, meant that the minimum wage increased by 10% in the last seven months, putting it above the legal minimum wage for those aged 23 and over, which will be £10.42 an hour from April.
However, Amanda Gearing, a senior organizer for the GMB union, which has supported workers at Amazon’s Coventry warehouse in the first strikes by its UK workers, said: “We are listening to Amazon workers and the message is very Of course: this new pay rate is an insult.
“So in response, we will consult in the coming days and announce a new wave of action.”
Darren Westwood, an Amazon worker, said: “Nobody thinks the extra 50p an hour we earn in Coventry is even remotely enough to live on.
“We know we are worth more, so we are going to step up the action and call on workers at other Amazon sites to join us in the strikes.”
Amazon, which has more than 30 UK warehouses, said: “We regularly review our pay to ensure we offer competitive wages, and we’re pleased to announce another raise for our UK operations teams.”
He said workers’ pay had risen 37% since 2018 and he also “worked hard to provide great benefits, a positive work environment and great career opportunities.”
Employees, including seasonal and part-time staff, also received a one-time payment of up to £500 at Christmas.
Amazon raised pay by around 50 pence an hour in August last year, but the unexpectedly low rise prompted workers at its Coventry fulfillment center to go on strike for eight days since January, including five days last week.
The workers became the first UK employees of the online retailer to go on strike on January 25. They called for a higher salary and have also complained of overbearing management practices and long hours.
The GMB union now has more than 500 members at the Coventry site, up from a few dozen last year.
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Several supermarkets and other retailers have increased wages to more than £11 an hour amid a battle for workers across the UK.
Aldi announced its fourth pay rise in just over a year last week, pledging £11.40 an hour from July, meaning that from next month Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda and Aldi will pay £11 an hour or further.
However, there are also signs of a slowdown at Amazon, which in January revealed plans to close three warehouses and seven delivery stations in the UK, affecting more than 1,300 jobs.
Globally, the group has announced plans to cut 27,000 jobs in areas including physical retail, advertising, live streaming and cloud services.
