2023-11-15 06:31:00
A large number of supermarket depots will be at a standstill this Wednesday with multiple blockages. The unions are effectively organizing two days of strike which take place today and next Wednesday. Consequently; supermarkets will also be impacted.
Negotiations around a purchasing power bonus in the food trade are at an impasse for supermarket depots. In the absence of an increase in wages, the government authorized, for the period 2023-2024, employers to pay a bonus to their workers if the company was in profit.
€250 in bonuses claimed
According to the union common front, employers only propose “peanuts“, that is to say, according to their calculations, a bonus of 75 euros for two years, amounting to 6 euros per month. Far from the 250 € claimed for all staff, as well as an additional consultation at the company level.
The unions are also warning employers by reminding us that we are not very far from the end-of-year holidays. “No bonus for workers, no party for employers”, they promise. According to the unions, negotiations have been slipping since September and “employers remain deaf to workers’ demands”.
“We are in a period where we are working almost just in time, so when there is a one-day work stoppage, it can have significant repercussions for store supplies. We are in the Saint-Nicolas period and Christmas is the period when companies make 30% of their annual turnover.explains Tanguy Cornu, co-president of FGTB Horval (Horeca and Food). “We must be very clear: we wanted to negotiate things that are reasonable, from the 31st we will no longer have a bonus, so from the 31st there will be no more social peace.”
Low margins
These negotiations between employers and unions are therefore still at a standstill. Supermarkets, in an already delicate situation, some regret the actions announced. According to them, this is completely unreasonable and very inappropriate. “According to official figures, the profit margin of Belgian supermarkets fell last year to a historically low level of 1.29%. Anyone who now threatens to take action is compromising the future of our supermarkets.”, according to Comeos. The federation also says it is confident regarding reaching an agreement.
Where are the blockages?
Chez Aldi, the ACV reports actions in the distribution centers of Heusden-Zolder, Turnhout, Zemst, Roeselare and Villeroux. In Heusden and Turnhout, pickets are not necessary while at the other sites there are filter barriers and the unions distribute leaflets.
There are also blockages in the deposit of Colruyt in Hal. At the Spar distribution center – also part of the Colruyt group – in Mechelen, work continues, but staff meetings are taking place there.
At the distribution center Delhaize in Zellik, there are many strikers, according to Mr. Rosseel, and it is therefore not necessary to carry out blockades. At the supermarket chain’s Ninove depot, workers are on strike, but staff meetings are also taking place there and leaflets are being distributed.
Negotiations around a purchasing power bonus in the food trade have reached an impasse and a strike notice has been underway in the sector for some time. The unions are therefore organizing two days of strike on November 15 and 22.
The unions are demanding a purchasing power bonus of 250 euros for all staff, as well as additional consultation at company level. The employers’ proposal would amount to less than 150 euros for two thirds of workers, according to the unions.
strike supermarket depots unions
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