Employment agency Job&Talent has been reported to the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate for allegedly advertising for temporary staff to work at Oscar Mayer’s Wrexham ready meals factory during fire strikes and reemployment.
More than 500 Oscar Mayer workers at the Wrexham industrial estate began widespread strikes in September over the company’s plans to sack and re-employ them to cut wages by up to £3,000 a year.
Before the strike began, Unite warned Job&Talent, which is a regular supplier of temporary staff to Oscar Mayer, that it was illegal to supply labor to replace striking workers.
Despite this, Job&Talent sent text messages to previous job seekers at the factory after the industrial action began, saying work was available, Unite claims.
Unite has now written to the Employment Agency’s Standards Inspectorate, which is part of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, asking them to investigate job&talent.
Job&Talent said it was “confident that we fully comply with all local regulations and requirements on this matter” and Oscar Mayer “rejects” the claims made by the union.
Wrexham MP Andrew Ranger said: “This would clearly be a breach of regulations as it is not permitted to use temporary staff to replace workers who are currently taking part in industrial action.
“I would urge Oscar Mayer to negotiate with their workers and their representatives at Unite and reach a mutually satisfactory, fair and ethical agreement for both the business and their workers.
“I remain supportive of the workers currently fighting fires and reemployment and urge Oscar Mayer not to be one of the last companies to use this before the Labor Rights Act goes into effect.”
Unite has also launched a multi-million pound legal action against the company. Unite has said it will pursue a number of unfair dismissal cases (where workers have been made redundant) and protection cases on behalf of all its members for failing to properly consult with the workforce before dismissing and re-employing them. The protection premiums claim alone could be worth more than £3m.
Oscar Mayer has long maintained that all employment regulations were followed and described Unite’s legal action as “sham”.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “It is no surprise that Oscar Mayer, who is happy to use fire and re-employment against labour, would work with an employment agency which appears to have no no restraint in disregarding legislation preventing strike-breaking.
“Our members are absolutely solid. The only way this dispute will end is if firing and rehiring are off the table. Unite will support our members as long as needed.
“We are putting Oscar Mayer on notice that no stone will be left unturned, whether industrial, legal or political in defense of our members.”
Unite said that instead of calling off the fire and re-hiring plans and negotiating with the union, Oscar Mayer is using agency staff to try to execute plans to eliminate some paid breaks, reduce other breaks and eradicate any payments increased days off for work. public holidays.
The workers, many of whom speak English as a second language, are being threatened with dismissal without severance pay or compensation if they refuse to accept the harmful conditions by signing new contracts, Unite said.
MORE NEWS:
Unite regional officer Jono Davies said: “Oscar Mayer cannot continue to bury his head in the sand. His behavior destroys his reputation in the supermarkets and becomes increasingly harmful to the company. He needs to put the fire away and re-engage talks and re-engage with Unite to find a solution that is acceptable to the workforce.”
Oscar Mayer is one of the UK’s largest manufacturers of ready meals and supplies large quantities of its products to Tesco, ASDA, Greggs, Aldi, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and the Co-op.
A Job&Talent spokesman said: “We are aware of the ongoing strike by workers at our client Oscar Mayer’s Wrexham site.
“Job&Talent has always been committed to prioritizing the rights and well-being of our workers. We take this situation seriously and are confident that we fully comply with all local regulations and requirements in this matter.
“Our team will continue to have an open dialogue with all parties involved and will do everything possible to provide the necessary support and assistance to facilitate a speedy resolution.”
A spokesman for Oscar Mayer said: “We remain disappointed by Unite’s decision to take industrial action and their public statements to date, which have been factually inaccurate. We have engaged fully and constructively with our colleagues and their representatives throughout this process, and most of our employees have signed up to the new terms.
“We have always fully complied with all relevant regulations, we continue to do so and we will defend our approach in the strongest terms should Unite pursue this bogus legal action.
“The changes we have made have not been made lightly, they are absolutely necessary to ensure a sustainable long-term business and to protect the jobs we provide in the local community. These measures also put us in line with most other businesses in our sector and similar companies in the local area. We continue to engage with our colleagues.”
Regarding Job&Talent’s report to the Employment Agency’s Standards Inspectorate, Oscar Mayer said: “We completely deny the claims made by Unite. Throughout this process we have fully complied with all relevant regulations and continue to do so.”
#union #reports #employment #agency #launches #legal #battle #Oscar #Mayer