Workers will undertake a programme of discontinuous industrial action throughout April and May amounting to ten 24 hour strikes on key production dates with a ban on overtime and work to rule provisions also in place.
Strike action had been taken previously on the 20 February while two days of strike action in March were suspended following the loss of a key supermarket contract.
The dispute has escalated with Vion since October 2011 following the rejection of a 2% pay increase offer plus changes to holiday entitlement. However, protracted efforts by Unite to reach a negotiated settlement have been spurned by the company throughout this period.
Unite Convenor at Vion Scot Walker said: “We’ve repeatedly sought to engage with the company but its clear they have no interest in negotiating with us. This is a low-pay sector of the economy the basic wage is less than £7 an hour but Vion is a global food processing giant with a turnover of nearly €9 bn.
“In this harsh economic climate taking industrial action is the last thing we want to do but the workers can’t keep accepting real terms pay cuts with families and households to sustain – they’ve chosen to fight back.”
Source: Unite
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