Tony Woodley, joint general secretary of the UK’s biggest auto union, Unite, has written to the chairman of BMW’s board of management to protest his union’s “outrage” at the manner in which 330 BMW agency workers were summarily sacked from the Oxford Mini plant earlier this week – and has warned the automaker there would be no further repeats of last Monday’s “disgraceful sackings”.
The union said BMW wants to sack 850 agency workers at Cowley plant, 330 of whom were dismissed one hour before their shift finished on Monday of this week. The balance, 520 workers, face the sack when they return to work this coming Monday.
BMW responded that the company had, together with plant union representatives, “unfortunately exhausted all other opportunities to deal with the current market situation”.
It said the weekend shift was given one week’s paid notice including holiday pay – not one hour’s notice.
“Communication was at 05.30hrs on 16 February, ie one hour before the end of the shift, but with a paid notice period of one week,” the automaker said in a statement.
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By GlobalDataWoodley warned BMW that Unite would not accept any further dismissals and demanded the automaker meet with the union “as a matter of urgency” to discuss saving jobs at the plant.
It also accused BMW of abusing the agreement on agency labour at Cowley, taking advantage of the workers’ “lack of rights to exploit working men and women, throwing them to the dole without further expense to or effort by the company”.
Unite said many of the remaining 520 workers were unclear as to whether or not they even have a job to go to on Monday as they have received no word from the company concerning its plans for them.
Woodley added the agreement to allow the use of agency labour at the plant was “most certainly not to see the creation of second class citizens who do not have the entitlement to redundancy payments in spite of years of service.
“My members, be they permanent or agency, are workers with families and responsibilities, not some asset to be cast aside as cannon fodder.”
BMW said: “The total number of agency associates leaving the plant remains at around 850 as per the announcement made earlier this week. Both weekend shift and weekday shift agency workers are included in that figure.
“We have a number of agency associates who will be returning to the plant on Monday following a week’s fixed holiday and although they all received a letter at home regarding the announcement, this is the first time their employing agency has had the opportunity to speak to them.
“On their return they will be advised individually by their employing agency what the shift pattern change means for them.
“Some will stay, others will be released from the business and some may be asked to stay at the plant a little longer to support the shift change if they are willing to do so.
“All will get at least one week’s paid notice, as per their contractual agreements.
“There will still be some agency associates working at the plant – around 126 in total.
“Due to continuing volatile market conditions, the plant will now move back to normal levels in Oxford with two shift production on five days, which is also the pattern in BMW Group’s German plants.
“To produce seven days per week with three shifts is a pattern which allowed the plant to meet extraordinary demand for the Mini.”