"Weetabix workers to hold four-day strikes over pay and conditions", 8 November 2021

Workers at two Weetabix factories will launch four-day strikes...in a dispute over pay and conditions.

Members of Unite at the company’s Kettering and Corby factories have been on strike every Tuesday and Wednesday since September over proposed changes to working practices that they claim could leave them up to £5,000 a year worse off.

The union claims engineers face cuts to their pay, terms and conditions, describing it as an example of a “fire and rehire” policy...which the company denies.

In an escalation of the dispute, strikes are to take place every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday...

About 80 engineers have been taking part in the Tuesday and Wednesday strike action since September at the Weetabix Mills factory in Burton Latimer and at its plant on the Earlstrees industrial estate in Corby...

Stuart Branch, the group people and IT director at Weetabix Food Company, said: “...We’re concerned to see that our reputation is being damaged in service of Unite’s national campaign on ‘fire and rehire’, which is irrelevant to the current industrial action at Weetabix.

“We have repeatedly reassured our engineering team and their union representatives that no individual is at risk of dismissal, and that roles exist for all, thanks to our ongoing investment in our UK factories. The current discussions with our team focus on a request for compensation for a change in shift patterns.

“As these changes are permitted under their existing contracts, we will not be paying for them as it would be unfair to our other employees. We are extremely proud of the efforts of our 1,000-strong British workforce, and have paid two additional bonuses over the last year to reflect their hard work throughout the pandemic.”