Justice fight goes on

Up to 300 workers, members of Unite are continuing to take strike action today (January 13).

But in a goodwill gesture, Unite is suspending the strike action scheduled for Thursday (January 19) to facilitate talks with the company under the auspices of the conciliation service, Acas.

Unite is increasingly concerned about job security, following the company’s proposals to start making employees redundant from 16 February, with minimal redundancy payments on the assumption that off-shore resources can be hired and skills transferred very quickly.

The union said that further job losses through redundancy and TUPE – Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) regulations – are planned from then on.

The background to the dispute was last year’s announcement that Fujitsu wants to cut 1,800 UK jobs – over 18 per cent of its UK workforce. The company is also ending the works council Fujitsu Voice tomorrow (January 14).
Unite regional officer Sharon Hutchinson said, “We have suspended Thursday’s strike action in Manchester as a gesture of goodwill for the Acas talks to take place in a constructive environment.

“Today is the 11th strike day in this dispute which demonstrates the high level of resolve of our members.

“Fujitsu is a very profitable company – ÂŁ85.6m in the last financial year – and our members will fight for justice on pay, pensions and job security,” she added.

“The strike action continues to have a significant impact on service delivery for customers and project timescales, which should give the management added impetus to seek a fair settlement.”

The Manchester workers started a 48 hour stoppage at just past midnight yesterday (January 12). A further 24 hour strike is due to start on 12.01am on Monday (January 16), with another day’s strike on Friday (January 20).

The strike also highlights the 16 per cent gender pay gap that Unite has identified from limited data provided by Fujitsu, which means that women staff are paid an estimated ÂŁ5,500-a-year less than their male counterparts. There is also a retrospective cut in pensions of up to 15 per cent for many staff who are over 60.

The company’s major sites include Belfast, Bracknell, Crewe, Londonderry/Derry, London, Manchester, Solihull, Stevenage, Wakefield and Warrington.