Workers Revolutionary Party - ‘BIG SUPPORT FOR US’ – In London region say Gate Gourmet locked-out workers

The News Line: News Wednesday, 8 February 2006 ‘BIG SUPPORT FOR US’ – In London region say Gate Gourmet locked-out workers

Gate Gourmet locked-out workers at their mass picket last month – this Friday’s mass picket will be on the sixth month anniversay of their dispute

GATE GOURMET locked out workers are winning great support in the London Region TGWU, and attended a meeting earlier this week.

Locked out worker Mrs Raj Sahdev told News Line yesterday: ‘They were very good people. One of the branch officers said she was sure that all of the branches in the region would support us.

‘She said she would join us on our six-months anniversary picket on Friday and that the union can’t be allowed to stop paying us our hardship payments.’

Mrs Sukhwinder Mundy added: ‘It was a good meeting. We told them everything that is going on – that Tony Woodley has said that the dispute is finished but we are still picketing on the hill and that the union hardship payments have been stopped.

‘They were very shocked at what they heard and said they supported us and the union must support us.

‘It was very important to go to tell our story at the branch. We must go to many other branches to win more support.’

Meanwhile, on the picket line yesterday, Surinder Dhaliwal said: ‘We are all under so much pressure. It’s been six months with no wages and no social security.

‘The union has only given us hardship payments up to January 6th, that’s a month ago.

‘They have betrayed us very badly. When we were forced out and locked out by the company the union said it would get us all back inside.

‘But then it signed the deal with the company accepting 150 compulsory redundancies based on past sickness levels.

‘I was chosen because I had an industrial injury while at work. My hand was trapped between two trolleys. It is still very painful.

‘We are going to win our unfair dismissal cases at the employment tribunals and we want the whole union to support us in our fight.

‘We must have our hardship payments restored and we want everyone to join us at our six-months anniversary picket on Friday.

Mrs Asha Varma said: ‘What the TGWU leaders have done here is something that must never happen again.

‘They have joined hands with the company. Together they have chosen who is to be offered re-engagement under the slave labour Survival Plan and who is to stay sacked.

‘The union leaders actually signed the deal which selected for compulsory redundancy all those the company wanted to keep out.’