Former worker We endured strict targets, restrictive breaks and meagre wages
A former Amazon worker welcomed the Scottish Government’s change of policy – while questioning why the massively profitable company received public funds in the first place.
She said: “I worked as a picker in 2016 at the Dunfermline warehouse. That is the person who takes the stuff off the shelf and puts it in crates before it goes away to packing.
“The shifts were 10-and-ahalf hours long and you got one half-hour break unpaid, and two paid 15-minute breaks.
“I had to clock in and out and join a long queue for lunch. I only had time for a packet of crisps and a drink, and I was actually being sick because of the amount of walking.
“It is a really physical job and I am not unfit in any way. I ended up damaging my leg so badly I had to go to physiotherapy for more than a year.
“On top of that, you have these strict targets to reach.
“In the beginning, I was reaching 170 per cent of my target, but when that fell to 117 per cent managers came around and pulled me up for it. I was being paid
the minimum wage through an agency, so basically the lowest amount that they could possibly give me.
“It was nowhere close to being enough to have any sort of decent life, so for me it wasn’t the best experience.”
The ex-employee, who wanted to remain nameless as family members still work at the plant, added: “I think it is obscene that this company is taking public money when you consider their attitude to paying tax, and the enormous multi-million pound profits they make.
“If public money is being given out, then it should be a condition that they pay the living wage as an absolute minimum.
“I would absolutely welcome Nicola Sturgeon’s insistence that this is the case from now on – she should be using these grants as a tool to insist that companies treat workers fairly.”