“Fired over a juice carton: Migrant cleaner takes on Amazon after summary dismissal”

A 60-year-old migrant cleaner who worked at Amazon’s Belvedere warehouse in southeast London has been sacked after an incident involving a damaged carton of juice that had been placed for disposal. Backed by UVW, she is now taking both Amazon and its cleaning contractor TCFM to the Employment Tribunal for race discrimination.

With over seven years of spotless service, Tobaida who hails from Latin America, was accused of theft and dismissed on the spot — without notice.

“I didn’t steal anything,” she says. “I thought I was doing my job.”

As part of her role, she was responsible for removing damaged items from the discard area. The carton had already been set aside as waste. It never left the site. Yet her presence near the goods was described as “unusual” and the incident was escalated to gross misconduct.

Backed by UVW, she is now taking both Amazon and its cleaning contractor TCFM to the Employment Tribunal. We believe that the decision to report her and seek her removal was driven by prejudice against migrant workers, in breach of the Equality Act 2010…