TATA WORKERS IN WALES TO HOLD AN INDEFINITE STRIKE ON 8 JULY 2,800 jobs at risk
Around 1,500 workers at Tata Steel will hold an “all-out indefinite strike” next month, the UNITE union has announced. The industrial action at the company’s sites in Port Talbot and Llanwern, Newport, will begin on 8 July, Unite said.
The union said the walkout would “severely impact” the company’s UK operations. It comes in response to plans to close Tata Steel’s blast furnaces in South Wales, putting 2,800 jobs at risk. The union said it would be the first time in more than 40 years that steel workers in the UK have gone on strike.
Industrial action short of a walkout, including staff working to rule and a ban on overtime, began earlier this week. The union’s general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Tata’s workers are not just fighting for their jobs – they are fighting for the future of their communities and the future of steel in Wales. Tata Steel previously said it was losing £1m a day at Port Talbot and warned the situation was unsustainable.
The company’s plans include the building of an electric arc furnace.
