by René Lavanchy
CONSUMER products giant Procter & Gamble faces a formal demand for trade union recognition at one of its British factories.
Unite has contacted the Government’s central arbitration committee requesting that it be allowed to negotiate on behalf of most of the 200-strong workforce at the Gillette works in Reading. If successful, the factory will be the first P&G site to recognise a union.
Unite regional secretary Ray Dillon said: “We’ve got in excess of 50 per cent membership in the bargaining unit. One can never say 100 per cent, but I’m pretty confident we’ve got everything covered.”
Ken Chapman, the factory worker who started the campaign, said managers were engaging in “anti-union” tactics by talking about how a union could cause the factory to close. “But we remain resolute”, he added.
Proctor & Gamble, whose products range from Fairy Liquid and Pringles to Pampers nappies and Head and Shoulders shampoo, employs some 7,500 staff in Britain.
