The GMB union has dropped its bid for recognition at Amazon’s warehouse in Coventry, accusing the retailer of “dirty tricks.”
The union said it had more than enough members to gain recognition at the site, but Amazon had hired 1,000 more workers to sabotage the attempt.
Amazon refuted the accusation, claiming that company constantly hires new employees.
It came as warehouse workers declared three more days of strike action.
Staff will go on strike from June 12 to 14, as part of a long-running salary issue.
For over a decade, the GMB has fought for the ability to officially represent Amazon workers in Coventry.
A successful bid would compel Amazon to discuss compensation, holidays, and sick leave with its employees.
The union believed that there were 1,300 workers at the Coventry site, with 800 of them belonging to the GMB.
This would have meant it had met the statutory recognition criteria.
Amazon employees are on the verge of gaining union recognition.
Hundreds of Amazon employees strike over salary.
When Amazon did not react within 10 days, the GMB moved its case to the Central Arbitration Committee, a government entity responsible with supervising the regulation of UK labor law.
According to the union, Amazon has been cramming its warehouse with new employees, and successfully argued to the committee that it had over 2,000 employees at the location.
The union had no choice but to abandon its bid for recognition because an unsuccessful bid would have barred it from reapplying for three years.
A union spokesman stated the warehouse currently has more employees than on Black Friday and Christmas, and that these new hires will cost the company an extra £300,000 each week.
GMB senior organiser Stuart Richards stated, “It’s dirty tricks, plain and simple.”
He stated that members would not “give up the fight for union recognition” and that “we’re not going away.”
Amazon denied stuffing the warehouse with new hires as an anti-union move, claiming it hires new team members “across the country and throughout the year to meet customer demand.”
It also claimed to offer “competitive pay, comprehensive benefits, and opportunities for career advancement, all while working in a safe, modern workplace.”
If employees had complaints, they could “communicate directly with the company’s leadership.”
Workers at the plant conducted the first strike at Amazon’s UK operations in January, and it was followed by walkouts in February, March, and April.
