The two disputes involve over 5,000 Usdaw members at nine Tesco distribution centres in: Daventry Clothing, Goole, Hinckley, Lichfield, Livingston, Magor (both trunk and main sites), Peterborough and Southampton.
 
The drivers and warehouse workers had rejected a 4% annual pay increase and Usdaw is looking for the company to improve the offer to avoid pre-Christmas disruption in stores.
 
Joanne McGuinness - Usdaw National Officer says: “We welcome the Tesco’s offer of further talks, which start tomorrow, and we will engage positively to seek a resolution to this dispute.
 
“Industrial action is always a last resort for our members. We sincerely hope that fresh negotiations can result in an acceptable offer from the business to avoid possible stock shortages in stores in the week before Christmas.”
 
Notes for editors:
 
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK's fifth biggest trade union with over 370,000 members. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemical industry and other trades.
 
For Usdaw press releases visit: http://www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Twitter @UsdawUnion