Engineers at Weetabix plants in Northamptonshire and Corby will down tools after the company tried to impose £5,000 of wage cuts using notorious fire-and-rehire tactics against employees. The union Unite will begin a series of 48 hour strikes on Tuesday 21 September followed by strikes on the same day every week throughout the autumn with the final strike scheduled to begin on Tuesday 30 November.
Unite said the industrial action was being carried out “in opposition to the company’s plans to fire and rehire them on vastly inferior contracts”. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “The idea of fire and rehire is abhorrent to me. “If Weetabix decide to go down this route and they overstep the line then I will absolutely defend our members.”
It comes as a delayed report into fire and rehire found its use was “widespread” by employers. Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) was warned its use could increase as the Government’s furlough scheme and business support measures end. Some of those Acas spoke to said they believed employers were using the Covid crisis “opportunistically as a smokescreen to diminish workers’ terms and conditions.”
Strike action had originally been scheduled for June but was postponed to allow for talks with the company. Those talks led to new proposals being put to the workers – which were overwhelmingly rejected in a ballot.
A Weetabix Food Company spokesperson said: “We are sorry to see our engineering team going on strike, but respect their right to do so. Over nearly 90 years we’ve built a strong relationship with our workforce, and to stay competitive for the next 90 years we need to bring in necessary new ways of working.
“It is unfair and inaccurate to compare this with other disputes that require new contracts to be signed or face dismissal; this is not a choice we’re considering at present. We remain in close consultation with our engineers and their representatives and are confident that the opportunity still exists to find a resolution that creates future shared success.
“We are not expecting to see any impact on our stock availability as a result of this or future strikes, due to robust planning and a resilient supply chain.”
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