Dave Reid, Cardiff Socialist Party
Nearly 200 workers at Princes juices in Cardiff are on strike 17 and 24 December as the company reneged on a pay offer.
Members of Unite at Cardiff, Wisbech, Long Sutton, Bradford and Glasgow were offered between 4% and 7% by the original owners of the company, Mitsubishi. But the company was sold to Newlat S.p.A. which tore up the offer and unilaterally imposed a 3% pay increase. Some workers will get slightly more but only because they will be captured by the increase in the minimum wage, which is going up faster than their pay.
The company says it cannot afford more than 3% but then boasted to investors of a big increase in profits. Its website says: “The combined ‘New Princes Group’ will have a turnover of €2.8 billion, a global network of 31 plants, 8,800 employees, and over 30 brands.”
All plants will be on strike 9-10 January, but members in Cardiff are on strike in December because of the surge in demand for juices over Christmas. The strike will mean there could be a shortage this Christmas that will hit company sales. So spirits are high and determined.
