Workers at the Drax power plant in Yorkshire announced a 48-hour strike from July 14, over a long-running dispute over pay. The call for the strike was given by the trade union Unite and the GMB union.
The unions have rejected a 2.8% wage increase offered by the company, terming it as “woefully inadequate.”
Unite regional officer Kelvin Mawer said: “Our members have overwhelmingly rejected the two-year pay deal of 2.8% for both 2018 and 2019 as being woefully inadequate when the cost of living continues to soar. They will now hold six 48-hour strikes right up to December in their campaign for pay justice. Drax Power claims that the threatened strike action will have no impact on energy production as the management and those on personal employment contracts will provide cover. We don’t believe this management ‘spin’, and think our members’ action in the coming months will have a detrimental impact on energy production”.
“The best way to avoid this scenario is for the management to sit down and hold constructive talks with the trade unions to reach a fair pay settlement”, he added.
Earlier in June, Unite was successful in negotiating 19% pay rise for a section of workers in the Argos warehouse in Kettering, Northamptonshire, UK.
