Tesco has responded to remarks made by Independents4Change TD Joan Collins in the Dáil on Thursday (2 February) that Tesco was planning to bypass its workers’ union Mandate and unilaterally impose a 15% pay cut “in addition to an attack on terms and conditions for the company’s longest-serving workers”.
Talking to IrishTimes.com, a spokeswoman for the retailer said there'd be “no job losses”, but there was an option to take voluntary redundancy.
Ms Collins accused Tesco of engaging in “union-busting activities” and accused the retailer of scheming to get rid of 1,200 long-serving workers.
Tesco's spokeswoman stated that the “1,200 figure is absolutely incorrect”, and that only 280 employees would be affected by the proposed new terms and conditions recommended by the Labour Court. She said Tesco was the only grocery retailer to recognise trade unions in Ireland, and that the rate of pay would not change.
“Tesco has accepted the Labour Court recommendation which endorsed a detailed proposal from the WRC that set out a fair resolution and was also accepted by Tesco,” the spokeswoman said. “The Labour Court recommendation is at the upper end of affordability, but in the spirit of reaching agreement and re-positioning our business in the challenging retail market, Tesco accepted it.”
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