Strikes escalate as Princes offers paupers pay

Workers at Princes Food have escalated strike action at the food production company following the withdrawal of an agreed pay offer, and a lack of movement from the employer.

Princes produce tinned goods for the nation’s supermarkets and shops, who could be hit with shortages during the strikes in Bradford, Cardiff, Glasgow, Long Sutton and Wisbech, some of which started today (Monday 6 Jan).

Industrial action has already taken place at the company’s Cardiff factory, but they are escalating after the company failed to come back to the negotiating table with an improved offer after Christmas.

The countrywide strikes will see hundreds of Unite members head to the picket line in January.

Princes Foods make dozens of household name products, such as Branston and Crosse & Blackwell, as well as their own brand tins and jars of meat and fish. 

Unite members are taking industrial action after having seen previous pay offers revoked by new owners. Unite’s members, who work as line operatives and engineers, had been offered between a four and seven per cent pay rise dependent on salary by the previous owner, Mitsubishi. 

The company was subsequently bought by Italian based multinational Newlat S.P.A, which withdrew that offer. Instead, it is offering just a three per cent pay rise.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Newlat need to get back round the negotiating table before its customers discover they won’t have any products on their shelves. Our members work in back-breaking roles on low pay and want a fair slice of the pie.

“Newlat make 20 per cent of all their revenues in the UK and are making money off the backs of these workers. Yet they want to shortchange our members. Unite won’t stand for such behaviour and back our members 100 per cent.”

In its latest half year financial reports, the Newlat Group expects to achieve sales of 2.8 billion euros during this financial year with profits of approximately 188 million euros.

Unite national officer for food, drink and agriculture, Paul Travers, said: “Newlat borrowed huge sums of money to buy Princes and is now looking to cut corners and penny pinch to pay that money back. Unite won’t let them do so with our members’ livelihoods.

“Newlat could have avoided this strike, which is one of their own making, by coming back to the negotiating table with a new and improved pay deal for our members.

Paul added that Unite has offered to take the dispute to ACAS to move things along to a resolution, but have been disappointed that the company has refused.

There will be a rolling pattern of industrial action at different factories across the country between today and 18 January, and unless the employer comes back to the table Unite will be serving notice of more strikes to follow.

There is more background on the strike here. 

By Keith Hatch