When talking to Usdaw, Aldi distribution centre staff have raised the following key issues of concern about their working conditions:
- Bullying from managers
- Unrealistic workloads
- Poor health and safety
- Difficult to get time off to care for children and dependents
- Threats of dismissal for joining union
Bally Aluk - Usdaw Area Organiser says: “We regularly receive feedback from Aldi staff who are generally unhappy about their treatment at work and they say morale at the distribution centre can be pretty low. Many Aldi workers are joining Usdaw and we urge others to sign up to the union, so that we can help get them a better deal and a strong voice at work for when things are going wrong."
“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 Aldi staff.”
Stephen Doughty MP for Cardiff South & Penarth says: “Joining a trade union is the basic right of any worker. It is the best way to protect your rights and those of your work colleagues on a whole range of issues from pay to health and safety. Millions of people across the UK are members of trade unions and Usdaw does a great job representing workers in a range of workplaces across the retail and distribution sectors, including locally here in South Wales. I would strongly encourage workers at Aldi to become a union member.”
Jenny Rathbone AM for Cardiff Central says: “As Aldi is committed to offering the best pay and conditions in the retail food industry, I feel confident that they will have no difficulty encouraging their staff to join a union to help promote and protect their rights. Trade unions can be particularly helpful in combatting workplace bullying which can be so harmful of people’s mental health.”
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