The Tetley strike intensifies due to an unresolved pay dispute involving over 150 workers.
- Workers at Teeside’s Tata Consumer Products, mainly women, claim unfair pay practices.
- Industrial action marks Tetley workers’ inaugural strike, highlighting employee-management tensions.
- GMB Union accuses management of intimidation tactics and legal threats.
- The strike follows a pay deal accepted in August, which workers found insufficient.
Over 150 Tetley employees have initiated a strike at Tata Consumer Products’ Teeside location, citing unresolved pay disputes. The GMB Union reports that these workers, primarily women, feel their wages do not reflect their hard work and have consequently planned further industrial action this coming week.
This strike is notable as it represents the first such action undertaken by employees at the well-known tea brand, Tetley. The GMB Union has highlighted significant ‘tensions’ between staff and management. Such tensions were spotlighted when management allegedly involved law enforcement during a previous protest, claiming that the predominantly female picketers were being ‘intimidating’.
In addition to this dramatic escalation, Tetley has reportedly taken legal measures against the workers, suing them for trespass. This move has intensified the standoff, as GMB organiser Paul Clark pointedly remarked, ‘These women work their fingers to the bone for this company, providing the UK with its favourite cup of tea. But they’re paid a pittance and it is just not right.’
Clark further criticised Tata bosses for attempting to intimidate workers by pursuing legal action against their striking employees, asserting that the staff ‘will not back down until they’ve won a pay rise that allows them a decent standard of living.’
This ongoing industrial action was triggered despite Tetley workers accepting a new pay deal in August. However, the GMB Union has expressed dissatisfaction, stating that the offer was far from adequate as these workers continue their fight for fair compensation.
The situation remains tense as Tetley workers continue to push for satisfactory pay amidst management’s resistance.
