Gareth Davies - Usdaw Deputy Divisional Officer for the Midlands says: “Lidl staff tell us they are generally unhappy about their treatment at work and they say morale at the distribution centre can be pretty low. Many Lidl workers are joining Usdaw and we urge others to sign up to the union, so that Usdaw can help get them a better deal and a strong voice at work for when things are going wrong. We call on the company to end their refusal to allow our officials on-site to speak with their staff in a civilised and grown up way.

“Lidl is a large provider of jobs in Wednesbury, so it is concerning that they are not even prepared to speak to Usdaw. Good industrial relations are important for business and that requires the staff having a voice, through an independent trade union, so that they get a proper say in their working lives. We urge the company to meet with Usdaw with a view to recognising us as the trade union for Lidl staff.”

Tom Watson MP – Deputy Leader of the Labour Party says: “It's more important than ever, as workplaces change to deal with new technology, that the voices of the workers are heard and properly represented. That's why I'm firmly supporting the long-running campaign by Usdaw, the shopworkers' union, to be recognised at the Lidl distribution centre in Wednesbury, and nationwide.

"There are significant concerns about working practices at Lidl, and the best way forward for management and staff is to recognise Usdaw officials in the workplace and help build the business together."

When talking to Usdaw Lidl distribution centre staff have raised the following key issues of concern about their working conditions:
- Poor health and safety
- Unreasonable volume of work and difficult to achieve performance targets
- Not receiving reasonable notice of rotas
- Unpaid hours after the shift has finished
- Discrimination and bullying from managers

Notes for editors:
 
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK's fifth biggest and the fastest growing trade union with over 430,000 members. Membership has increased by more than 28% over the decade. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemicals and other trades.
 
For Usdaw press releases visit: http://www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Twitter @UsdawUnion