Amazon employees stage 'Black Friday strikes' across Europe

The UK’s trade union GMB is staging protests across the UK against “inhumane working conditions” in Amazon warehouses.

Hundreds are expected to take part in the protests at Amazon warehouses in Rugeley, Swansea, Peterborough, Milton Keynes and Warrington.

A 2018 investigation by GMB revealed that ambulances were called out to Amazon warehouses 600 times in the past three years.

Other figures revealed that a total of 602 reports have been made from Amazon warehouses to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

Tim Roache, GMB general secretary, said in a statement: “The conditions our members at Amazon are working under are frankly inhuman. They are breaking bones, being knocked unconscious and being taken away in ambulances.

“We're standing up and saying enough is enough, these are people making Amazon its money. People with kids, homes, bills to pay - they're not robots.

“Jeff Bezos is the richest bloke on the planet; he can afford to sort this out. You'd think making the workplace safer so people aren't carted out of the warehouse in an ambulance is in everyone’s interest, but Amazon seemingly have no will to get round the table with us as the union representing hundreds of their staff.

“Working people and the communities Amazon operates in deserve better than this. That's what we're campaigning for.”

Black Friday protests are also taking place in Italy, Germany and Spain, media outlets from the respected countries have reported.