Food wholesaler and distributor Bidfood is facing strike action and delayed deliveries after choosing to ‘derecognise’ two unions that represent its workers, writes carol Millett.
Both Unite and GMB have urged the company to reverse its decision, however, Bidfood said it stood by its decision, accusing Unite and GMB of making claims about its derecognition decision that are ‘highly inflammatory and untrue’.
GMB accused the company of becoming ‘P&O on the road’, referencing the ferry operator that became notorious in 2022 for its ‘hire and fire’ policy which saw it sack 800 staff and replace them with agency workers
The unions said the announcement was made with no previous notice given to either union and that the derecognition took place with immediate effect.
Unite is warning its members that the move is a precursor to attacks on workers’ pay and conditions.
Bidfood is one of the UK’s largest food distributors and its clients include schools, prisons, the army, Subway, Five Guys and Manchester United.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Bidfood is guilty of union busting pure and simple and Unite will not tolerate such behaviour at any level.
“Unite’s focus is always on defending its members and Bidfood needs to reverse its perverse decision or face the inevitable consequences.”
GMB also condemned Bidfood’s decision this week. Nadine Houghton, GMB national officer, said: “GMB, Unite and Bidfood have successfully worked together to improve workers’ pay, terms and conditions since at least the 1990s.
“Without us, bosses will be able to do what they want, ripping up their contracts and enforcing worse terms and conditions.
“Bidfood faces becoming P&O on the road and GMB members won’t stand for it. All options are open, including an industrial action vote.”
Bidfood denied the unions’ claims this week. In a statement the company confirmed that after ‘careful consideration’ it had derecognised the union.
It added: “This was not a decision we made lightly, however we’ve found in recent years that the Collective Bargaining Unit (CBU) is not reflective of the interests of the majority of our employees and is therefore not fully representative of those working within transport or our warehouse roles, with a number of employees voicing concerns and frustrations over long delays in resolving issues.”
The unions are calling on Bidfood workers who are not in the union to join one of the two unions.
