Strike action has been suspended at Diageo’s Scottish operations after management and unions struck a last-minute pay deal.
Workers had been set to walk out across numerous sites after unions rejected a final pay offer of 2.8% on Monday September 16, but a deal was struck shortly before the first of a wave of strikes was due to start at 22:00 on Tuesday September 17.
A Diageo spokesperson said, “Following further negotiations today, our improved offer has been recommended for acceptance by both the GMB and Unite unions and strike action has been suspended. We are pleased to have reached agreement on a good, fair offer that ensures our employees can receive an increase on their pay while maintaining the competitiveness of our operations.”
Background detail:
- This agreement is for a two-year deal – it includes a 3% increase in year one and then an RPI increase with a commitment to put in place a performance-based incentive bonus in year two.
- This agreement will now be balloted on by members of the respective unions.
- Both parties have also committed to talks to agree a new ‘collective agreement’ for future years.
