Supermarkets ‘must take responsibility for labour shortages’

Supermarkets must take responsibility for the labour shortages affecting their supply chains, general union Unite has said, and warned them “not to seek quick fixes, such as raiding other countries of their workers”.

Instead, the union says, they must work with it to address the longstanding issues of insecure work, low pay and poor working conditions that lie behind the labour shortages.

Unite national officer for food, drink and agriculture, Bev Clarkson said: “Many parts of the UK food manufacturing sector, particularly poultry processing, are infamous for low wages, insecure contracts and exhausting work.

“The supermarkets fostered and became ever more dependent on a supply chain based on a high turnover of cheap labour.

“But that model, which was exploitative, is broken, and the supermarkets must take responsibility for making it fit for purpose.”

General union the GMB demanded that employers must increase wages and improve terms and conditions to deal with the supply issues.

Andy Prendergast, its national secretary, commented: “This government buried its head for the last five years and now we are feeling the result.

“Workers are quite rightly jumping at the opportunity to leave bad-paying jobs to get more cash down the road. GMB will be submitting claims for significant rises right across the economy.”

https://www.unitetheunion.org/news-events/news/2021/august/supermarkets-must-take-responsibility-for-hgv-and-food-labour-shortages

https://www.gmb.org.uk/news/bosses-must-increase-wages-end-crippling-supply-chain-crisis