Sellafield workers to strike

About 10,000 people work at Sellafield

Strike action by workers at the Sellafield nuclear reprocessing plant will begin next week, unions have announced.

The GMB and Amicus trade unions say selective strike action will start on 14 November.

They have warned that four 24-hour strikes will take place each Friday until 5 December, and that action could be stepped up after that point.

In a statement, British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL), the owner of the site, said it wanted to reassure the public about safety and said it was disappointed at the decision to strike.

More than 2,000 workers at the Cumbrian plant were last week balloted and voted overwhelmingly to strike over salaries.

The site's industrial workers want their rates of shift pay brought into line with the company's white-collar employees.

It is a real disappointment to be in this position after 30 years of excellent labour relations Brian Watson, BNFL

They are looking to increase their pay by up to £2,000 a year.

Unions say BNFL agreed in 1999 to end shift pay discrepancies by 2004.

But the process is not now due to be completed until 2009.

Dougie Roony, from Amicus, said: "The BNFL board should instruct the company's management team to re-enter negotiations with the unions as these strikes could still be averted.

"Their failure to do so will cause a long-running strike because our union is fully prepared to go the distance on this issue."

Unions have said emergency manning cover would be provided during the selective strikes.

Safety commitment

BNFL has a formal agreement with the unions involved in the action to ensure that all nuclear plants remain in a safe condition.

In a statement on Friday, BNFL's director of Sellafield site, Brian Watson, said: "There is no difference between us and the unions on safety.

"Both parties are absolutely committed to the safety of the site and the surrounding community.

"As a company we have done our best to resolve this issue and we have an agreement with the unions which has been accepted at other BNFL sites.

"However, shift workers here at Sellafield have rejected this agreement. It is a real disappointment to be in this position after 30 years of excellent labour relations."