Arena Magazine 2005 Issue 4

Membership injection at Chiron

Usdaw is known throughout the UK as the shopworkers’ union, but it’s a misleading title with around 90,000 members employed outside of the retail sector. Transport/distribution, home shopping, food manufacturing, to name but a few, make up large blocks of the union’s membership. However, probably the least well-known Usdaw sector contains the pharmaceutical membership who have a long and proud history in Usdaw and have a bright future ahead of them. Arena visited the Usdaw reps at the Chiron Vaccines site 3 in Liverpool to find out more.

You wouldn't expect to find Usdaw members working in the high-tech clinical surroundings of one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world, but that's exactly the situation at Chiron Vaccines in Speke, Liverpool.

You will also find a dedicated team of reps with more than 95 per cent membership among the shopfloor staff. No mean feat when you consider it involves three sites (situated on a massive industrial estate) all of which are 24/7 operations supplying more than 30 million flu vaccines a year to, predominantly, the USA market.

This is a spotlessly clean working environment. Staff are fully covered in protective clothing and washing facilities and procedures are extensive and rigorously applied. Essential in an industry that is watched closely by the health regulatory bodies and where exacting standards are applied.

Heading up the seven-man team are branch officers John Challinor and Billy Stevens who have spent the last five years rebuilding the union's organisation after a period of decline.

Top of their agenda was to improve internal union communications across the sites and success here has paid off with high membership and a well-informed workforce. "Branch meetings are difficult here because of the varied shift patterns," said John. "So the reps work constantly to talk to members and potential members across the numerous departments - and it works.

"Credit to the company, it is very accommodating. Reps are allowed time to talk to staff, we also have fortnightly meetings with senior management and we can hold site meetings in work's time when necessary. We also have a union office equipped by the company."

This progressive approach also means that reps get time off for training and other union activities. Any shopfloor problems tend to get solved at an early stage as both company and union encourage dialogue and make full use of the procedures.

Human resources director Terry Harris has worked with a number of reps over the years at the site which, up until Chiron bought it in 2003, had a long history as a pharmaceutical plant. "We have a good working relationship with the reps here," he said.

"We've come through some difficulties but the future looks very promising. The increasing use of preventative medicine is now recognised as a major part of the health agenda, so ours is a good business to be in."

"Turnover of staff is quite low here," said Billy Stevens. "There are many long serving staff and that's usually a good reflection on what type of place it is to work. Wages are about the 'norm' for the industry although obviously we are always trying to improve them. This year's negotiations are due to take place soon. Annualised hours are also expected to be the subject of intense negotiations over the coming months."

The site also boasts an international dimension with Brian Lavin sitting on the company's European Works Council. "This gives me the opportunity to link up with fellow trade unionists from other sites abroad," he said. "I enjoy it and I think it's an important part of modern trade unionism."

This is a competitive, dynamic sector and the company's aim to stay ahead of the game is well advanced. Over the coming years sites 1&2 will gradually move into site 4, currently being built and equipped to aid the company's expansion.

"This will be a difficult task," said Terry Harris. "There will be job and training implications but if everything goes to plan the new site should be up and running by 2007/8."

Going global at Chiron

• Chiron Vaccines is part of the multi-national Chiron Corporation an American company founded in 1981.
• Its headquarters are in Emeryville, California. Its UK HQ is in Oxford.
• In addition to Chiron vaccines its other two divisions are Chiron Blood Testing and Chiron BioPharmaceuticals.
• It employs around 5,400 people worldwide.
• It has a distributor network in Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Russia, South Korea and the USA.
• It has manufacturing facilities in Germany, India, Italy, Liverpool, Netherlands and the USA.
• It has research centres of excellence at Emeryville, Seattle and Siena in Italy.
• The word 'chiron' comes from Greek mythology. Chiron was a wise centaur who taught the healing arts to Asclepius, the first physician.

Medical science at Chiron

While flu vaccines are manufactured at Liverpool the company are also involved in treatments for a number of medical conditions including: meningitis, cystic fibrosis, hepatitis B & C, multiple sclerosis, cancer and HIV.

These include antibiotic inhalers, immune system stimulators and other products which make up a long list of trademarked drug treatment products.

Chiron are also major players in blood screening products and blood-testing systems.

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