Amazon union leader flies in to help UK strikers ‘kick down the door’
The leader of Amazon’s first union has made his first trip outside the United States to support striking workers at the online retail giant’s Coventry warehouse.
Chris Smalls, who helped coordinate a successful unionisation drive at an Amazon warehouse in Staten Island, New York, in April 2022, travelled to the UK last week to provide advice to British workers as they try to gain recognition from the company.
“It’s important that we amplify each other’s fight and struggles because we want to build that international solidarity,” Smalls told the Observer. “Just like they’re refusing to talk to these workers and negotiate a fair contract, we’re in the same process back at home.”
Smalls’s trip has been in the making for a month, with the 34-year-old specifically registering for a passport in order to make his first journey. “I booked my flight the same week I got my passport,” he said. “As soon as I got that letter that I’m free to leave, I made sure this trip was a priority.”
That Smalls made the visit – and that it was his first – has been seen as a vindication for the 400 staff striking at the Coventry warehouse. They are seeking higher pay, but also complaining about overbearing management and long working hours.
“For Chris to say the first thing he wanted to do was come out here has got me,” said Darren Westwood, one of the Amazon workers picketing the Coventry facility. “It blows my mind.”
The dispute is the first official organised strike of Amazon workers in the UK. Previous actions in Tilbury, Essex which saw staff gather in the warehouse canteen to protest at pay and conditions, were wildcat strikes.
The Coventry strikers, who account for around one-fifth of the 2,000 staff at the site, are seeking a 43% increase in pay
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