Heinz workers reject pay offer
ANOTHER 24-hour strike will be held today at Heinz’s factory near Wigan after workers rejected a new pay offer.
Management put a 3.5% pay rise for 2011-12 to the Unite union at the start of the month.
Unite agreed to suspend industrial action ahead of a ballot of its members, but it promised another strike on January 11 if the offer was rejected. The union said 65% of the 1,200-strong workforce voted against the new offer.
A Heinz spokesman said negotiations will continue but added that the strike will leave many people “totally perplexed” and will “reward no-one” in the long term.
Jennie Formby, Unite’s national officer for food and drink, said: “The company is fully aware that the industrial action will continue until we reach a settlement that is acceptable to our members so I hope that when we meet they will be prepared to add some real value to the offer.”
Workers held two days of strike action last month in protest at a pay offer of 3.3% in the first year and 3% in the second.
Under the new deal, workers would receive a 3.5% rise in the first year plus a £200 one-off payment and a 3.4% increase in the second year. Shift workers will get a further increase of between 0.6% and 1.6%.
Heinz’s Kitt Green factory makes beans, soups, puddings and pasta meals.
