Tesco staff to strike in row over hours

SUPERMARKET giant Tesco faces strike chaos after 1,200 staff voted to walk out on July 2 in a row over rostering.

Some 19 stores across the country will be affected by a series of rolling strikes.

The workers, members of the Mandate trade union, claim Tesco is giving them less than their contracted hours.

When Mandate balloted the 1,215 members affected, 95% voted in favour of industrial action.

They will hold a one-day strike on July 2 and if that does not achieve their aims they will hold two days of action starting on July 9.

The stores affected are mainly in the Leinster region but also include Roscrea, Tralee Manor and Killarney New Street.

Mandate assistant general secretary Linda Tanham said: “Some of our members are losing out on over €100 per week due to unreasonable and unnecessary cutbacks in working hours and it should be remembered that some of these are already low-paid workers.

“This is of particular concern for Mandate when you consider that the company made approximately €250 million in profits last year in Ireland alone and over €3.1 billion internationally.”

She said Tesco was using the recession as a means to reduce the living standards of workers in the pursuit of extravagant profit margins.

“We are all facing difficult times and it’s clear from Mandate’s perspective we have to behave reasonably and responsibly if a company is in financial difficulty.

“Having said that, we will not accept companies playing off the recession and we will fight to maintain and improve the living standards of our members,” she said.

Tesco said: “We are disappointed that we have been served with strike notice in relation to the reduction of hours for staff in 19 of our stores.

“Any reduction in staffing hours had been as a result of adverse trading patterns and had been in accordance with agreements made with the trade unions which are the subject of conciliation discussions at the Labour Relations Commission.

“The timing of the announcement is particularly disappointing given that we have introduced a significant price reduction programme, which is being rolled out nationally. This has significantly reduced weekly shopping bills for customers, improved trading patterns and in turn resulted in more hours being offered to staff.

“The programme will be rolled out to the 19 stores referred to by Mandate in the coming weeks. This measure... will help recover trade in those stores, leading to increased hours and greater job security for staff.”

The company said it remains available for discussions on the issues raised.

Meanwhile, a dispute between staff and management at Tesco’s new premises in Douglas, Co Cork, appears to be over.

The company moved out of the old premises and into the new facility on May 1.

However, in advance of that move, 80 workers went on strike over the Tesco’s intention to compulsorily buy out the terms and conditions accrued by long-term staff.

This week the Labour Court issued a recommendation which, according to Mandate, said all the people in the old store should transfer permanently on all of their existing terms and conditions of employment and work practices.