Rae Cox, Oxford Socialist Party
In Didcot, Oxfordshire, Atalian Servest cleaners and caterers, members of Unite, have joined the strike wave.
Atalian Servest is a subcontractor of Tesco that runs the depots, and in the process raked in a cool £84 million in profits in 2021. But despite this, cleaners and caterers are paid as little as £11-an-hour and £10.42-an-hour respectively, all while working understaffed shifts with overstuffed job sheets.
So when they asked for an inflation-beating pay rise and were offered, at best, a 35p increase, they had no choice but to go on strike. In response, depot management showed their worries by bringing out five security guards to police the gate on the first day, and personally coming down to the picket to scold the workers.
But with a solid base of support, a plan for escalation, and solidarity from other depot workers, the mood by the end of the first day was high.
The solution is clear: the workers should get an inflation-beating pay rise, rather than that money going to Atalian Servest and Tesco shareholders. The sooner unions can coordinate action and fight as one, the sooner many more workers can get a fair share.
