Workers Revolutionary Party - GATE GOURMET WORKERS PICKET TGWU OFFICE

The News Line: News Saturday, 27 May 2006 GATE GOURMET WORKERS PICKET TGWU OFFICE

Gate Gourmet locked-out workers picketing TGWU office at Hillingdon yesterday demanding after 10 months that their dispute be made official and that they receive dispute pay

GATE Gourmet locked-out workers picketed the Transport and General Workers Union Regional Office in Hillingdon west London yesterday.

They are going to their employment tribunals later in the year and are demanding that the union restores their hardship payments and fights for their reinstatement.

Paramjit Brar, told News Line: ‘We want the union to pay us our hardship pay as is our right.

‘I’ve got no job and get nothing from the social security. We are still here and still fighting for our jobs back on the same terms and conditions.’

Satti Uppal said: ‘We are struggling to win, we have made lots of friends and supporters since we were locked out last August and we want them all to join us at our anniversary rally later this summer.’

Harbans Saroway said: ‘The 10th of August was a very bad day for us.

‘When we remember that day we remember how scared we were.

‘The company locked us out for no reason, the union leaders said that they would fight for us but they have done everything to help the company and nothing for us.’

Mussarat Saeed added: ‘We are still suffering. I’ve got four kids and lots of bills.

‘We are very angry with the union leaders, we trusted them, but they took the company’s side.

‘They kept telling us to sign the deal, sign the deal, but I couldn’t sign it, it took away all my rights and it took away my job.

‘This has given us all terrible stress and worry but we have gone through the worst stage and I’m very confident we will win.

‘We have been suffering for all these months. They can’t give us what they owe us for all the stress they have caused and the hard time we have had.

‘But we want reinstatement on our original terms and conditions and all our lost wages and we are going to get it.’