Press Release

Morrison Women Facing Sack in New Year Are Victims of Sex Discrimination Says GMB

22 December 2005

GMB has called a press conference/photo call of women members employed in the Morrisons supermarket administration unit in Sough Shields on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the coming in to force of the Sex Discrimination Act (SDA) on the 29th December 1975, at

12 NOON ON
WEDNESDAY 28TH DECEMBER
GMB OFFICE
26 CHAPTER ROW
SOUTH SHIELDS
NE23 1BN

The purpose of the press conference/photo call is to demonstrate to the media that 30 years after the SDA came into force that sex discrimination is alive and well. The picture will present former Safeway female employees working in the administration unit of Morrisons in South Shields told by the company that they would lose their jobs in the New Year who are to be paid the statutory redundancy pay only plus £75 for each year of service. This is only one third of what their male colleagues being made redundant will receive.

As a result of not being included in the redundancy agreement reached earlier this year for 1,500 most male depot workers to be made redundant at Alyesford and Warrington Morrisons distribution depots the 175, mainly female, redundant workers at South Shields will receive only a third of the money that their male colleague in the depots will receive. The company has point blank refused to recognize GMB as the union for the administration unit in South Shields and have refused to apply the national redundancy agreement terms there.

GMB has taken legal advice on behalf of the women and is in the process of lodging Employment Tribunal cases for each of the 175 women. The current law does not allow collective claims to the tribunals. This is one of the main demands of the trade unions to attack the culture of job segregation that prevails in much of the private sector and which is responsible for most of the gender pay gap.

Martin Gammon GMB Northern Regional Organiser who will be with the Morrison women at the press conference said, "On the eve of the 30th anniversary of the introduction of the Sex Discrimination Act, sex discrimination is alive and well and one employer practicing it is trading on a high street near you. Morrisons which took over Safeways are trying to make female staff in South Shields redundant on only a third of the redundancy money that they have agreed to pay the mainly male staff being made redundant in the warehouses. GMB urges the public tomorrow on the 30th anniversary of the coming into force of the Sex Discrimination Act to make clear to Morrison store managers that this is unacceptable.

This sex discrimination is completely unacceptable to GMB. Litigation will follow if the company persists with this plan."

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