Chris Huggins, Basildon Socialist Party
Unite the Union members at Basildon CNH tractor plant started nine days of strike action on Tuesday 14 May. The company has broken a 2022 pay agreement to increase pay in 2024 by the average rate of inflation for the year, which would have been 7.4%. Instead, CNH has offered 4%, based on the fact that the official inflation rate has recently dropped.
Compare this with a multimillion-pound package to the CEO, who took away 310 times the pay of the average worker at CNH Group in 2022!
Strikers say years of below-inflation increases, and general mistreatment and lack of respect for the workforce, have also played a part in this action. The picket is well attended and morale is high, helped by a BBQ and sound system.
Talks involving ACAS have not resolved anything yet, so action will continue on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays until 30 May, with discussion about possible escalation.
