Fujitsu workers set for strike
Workers at computer giant Fujitsu are to stage six strikes in a row over job cuts, a pay freeze and pension changes, it was announced today.
Unite said the walkouts on December 18 and January 7, 8, 11, 14 and 15 will be the first national strike in the IT sector ever in the UK.
The union is protesting about proposals for 1,000 redundancies, a pay freeze imposed earlier this year and plans by the company to close the main final salary pension scheme to future staff.
Unite said it planned to stage a “Scrooge” protest outside the company’s London headquarters on December 18, contrasting the company’s treatment of staff with last year’s £200m profit and money paid out to two directors as “compensation for loss of office”.
Joint general secretary Derek Simpson said: “Whilst we remain ready and willing to talk at any time, this further rejection of the company’s position leaves no doubt – our members saying enough is enough.
“We recognise the effect any industrial action will have on key private and public sector customers and clients of Fujitsu, but the responsibility for this rests squarely with the company for failing to address the issues.”
Fujitsu employs around 11,500 people in the UK at sites including Bracknell, Stevenage, Manchester, Crewe, Belfast, Staines, Basingstoke, Wakefield, Sheffield, Solihull, Telford, Swansea, Slough, Lewes, Warrington, Cardiff, Londonderry, Bristol, Newcastle upon Tyne and London.
