Trade union FNV is once again at loggerheads with supermarket chain Jumbo regarding the treatment of distribution staff. After Jumbo managed to sideline the union last month, FNV is now hinting at a consumer boycott of the supermarket chain. FNV: "The battle will harden."
The Financieele Dagblad writes. In the battle for a new collective labour agreement, Jumbo emerged victorious last month. In a survey, a majority of logistics employees said they preferred Jumbo's Working Conditions Regulations (AVR) to the collective labour agreement. The supermarket chain developed the AVR together with the Central Works Council (COR) as an alternative to the collective labour agreement. In its own words, because it could no longer talk to the union.
Unions sidelined
The AVR is a thorn in FNV's side, with the union previously saying, "Agreeing an AVR with your own central works council (cor) is irresponsible. We have already seen this in the hospitality industry. There, an AVR led to huge deteriorations in the sector. So: no matter how well the people in the works council mean it, if you conclude an agreement with your own employer, it means that you no longer have any say in your own terms of employment."
In the Financieele Dagblad, Zakaria Boufangacha, employment conditions policy coordinator and FNVboard member, argues that Jumbo is depriving employees of the fundamental right to be represented by a union in collective bargaining. "The Works Council does not have that mandate. The employer can also break in unilaterally at any time and change the rules of the game. Employees are completely at its mercy."
'The battle will harden
The union is also dissatisfied with Jumbo's attitude. Jumbo managers allegedly intimidate union members and issue official warnings for distributing FNV flyers. The union executives are barred from Jumbo premises. "They are trying to suppress us," says FNV executive Ali Aklaouch. "The fight will harden."
Boufangacha even hints in the newspaper at a consumer boycott of Jumbo. "I'm not that far off at the moment. But there are smarter ways to hurt Jumbo than a strike. Naming and shaming, maybe we should start calling on consumers to stop shopping at Jumbo until the company starts treating employees decently."
Reaction Jumbo
Jumbo responded to FNV's accusations in the FD: "We do not recognise at all the image of intimidation and that there would be ongoing unrest in the distribution centres. We no longer see any reason for admitting the FNV. The collective agreement to which FNV was party has expired and will not be renewed. Our employees have clearly expressed their preference: 80 per cent opted for the avr, only 4 per cent voted in favour of the collective agreement."
