Our members working as meat inspectors and official vets for the Food Standards Agency have been on picket lines across the country since first light this morning. And they will be doing the same thing again tomorrow.
After four years of pay freezes and paltry pay rises, FSA workers saw the value of their pay drop by 15%. But, a 1% earmarked pay rise was cut to 0.75% and imposed on staff. The remainder of the tiny package was distributed, in secret, to a selective section of the workforce.
This unfair and divisive decision led to our members voting overwhelmingly for strike action. Just like all public sector workers, these members feel abandoned by the Food Standards Agency, and by the government.
Slaughterhouse staff endure some of the most grotesque working conditions imaginable, covered in blood and faeces, to protect all of us ;from eating meat containing diseases, dirt and parasites. It is hot, difficult, stressful work.
They are the last line of defence between the carcasses that enter a slaughterhouse, and the meat that ends up on our dinner plates. They are the people who ensure that the human food chain remains clean and uncontaminated. And they deserve a decent pay packet to reflect this
UNISON has repeatedly asked the FSA to come to the table to negotiate a fair pay settlement. Right up until last Friday, we urged them to enter talks with ACAS. But once again they refused.
Today’s strike shows the strength of feeling amongst our members at the FSA. They are not asking for a massive pay increase, just for the cost of living rise they are entitled to. The money available for a cost of living increase should be distributed fairly and transparently to the entire workforce.
The FSA must recognise this, and begin to negotiate a better deal for our members who carry out such a vital role in keeping the public safe.