As Brexit Hits Recruitment and Inflation Jumps, UK Supermarket Giant Tesco Faces Christmas Strike
11:10 GMT 19.11.2021 (Updated: 15:16 GMT 28.05.2023)
© REUTERS / Peter Cziborra
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Inflation has risen dramatically in Britain in the last few months and trade unions say many workers’ pay has not kept up. Employers are also finding it harder to fill low-paid jobs since Brexit because of the lack of foreign nationals.
Workers at several distribution warehouses of the British supermarket giant Tesco are being balloted on industrial action which could affect shoppers in the run-up to the hectic Christmas and New Year period.
Members of the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (Usdaw) at nine Tesco distribution centres in Daventry, Goole, Hinckley, Lichfield, Peterborough and Southampton in England, Livingston in Scotland and two sites at Magor in Wales have rejected a pay rise which amounted to an increase of only 50 pence an hour.
It follows a similar vote by members of the Unite trade union last month at four Tesco distribution centres in Thurrock, Didcot, Doncaster and Belfast.
Both unions point out the offer of a four percent rise effectively amounted to a pay cut because the RPI inflation rate has been going up and hit six percent this week.
Last month Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Tesco made more than £3 billion during the pandemic yet pretends it cannot afford to pay the workers responsible for such staggering profits a decent pay rise. Offering four per cent is offensive when RPI inflation is running at nearly five per cent.”
Paul Kavanagh, who works at one of the distribution centres, told Sputnik: “If we go on strike it would be one or two days in the week before Christmas, which is when Tesco does 35 percent of its annual trade. Christmas can make a break a company like Tesco.”
This week the German-owned supermarket chain Lidl GB it would increase its entry level pay from £9.50 to £10.10 outside London and from £10.85 to £11.30 in the capital.
Mr Kavanagh said: “Before Brexit there was an unlimited number of foreign workers who were pushing wages down in this country. Lots of English people don’t want to do this sort of work. It’s all shifts and it’s heavy work, moving big bags of potatoes and carrots around. And the depots are cold. It’s not a nice place to work.”
He said there was a very high turnover of staff: “We often take on 20 people a week. Only 10 of them will actually turn up and of those most will have left by the end of the week.”
Mr Kavanagh said: “Tesco are struggling to find staff since Brexit, but they have said they see this as a blip. I’m wondering if they expect to be allowed to hire from Europe again in the future.”
Shopworkers remove Irish pork products from the shelves of a Tesco supermarket in Belfast, Northern Ireland (File)
© AP Photo / Peter Morrison
Usdaw expects to find out the result of the ballot on industrial action in the week of 6 December and the earliest they could strike would be 20 December.
A Tesco spokesman said: "We are disappointed that a decision has been taken to ballot for potential industrial action at a number of our distribution sites. We have put forward a fair and competitive pay offer to our colleagues, which is one of the highest awards made within our distribution business in the last 25 years.”
