The
month-long lockout of workers at Talleys-owned Open Country Cheese is
over after workers have secured their goal of a collective employment
agreement to cover their jobs.
“The
members of our union at Open Country Cheese have stuck together right
through this very difficult dispute,” Dairy Workers Union National
Secretary James Ritchie said.
“All
that these workers wanted was some basic job security through a
collective employment agreement and they were illegally locked out
for standing up for their rights.” The company’s
restructuring at the plant greatly reduced the number of positions
available and a confidential settlement was reached for workers whose
jobs have disappeared, he said.
“The
workers were buoyed on by the very strong support of the Waharoa and
wider Waikato community, and the solidarity of the union movement.
Their stand for fairness at work shows that workers are stronger when
they act together in unions,”
James
Ritchie said.
This
is an important victory for all dairy workers as it will certainly
make other employers think twice about taking on the union.