Supermarket chain Albert Heijn is deploying temporary workers to limit the impact of the strike in its distribution centers. This is reported by the trade union FNV on the basis of what striking staff say. FNV has therefore reported to the Labor Inspectorate, because the use of so-called strikebreakers is prohibited by law.
It’s about signals, the union has no proof that it says ‘black and white’. However, a spokesperson for FNV states that there is sufficient reason to make the report. He thinks it is ‘not proper’ if Albert Heijn does indeed use temporary workers to break the strike. Albert Heijn denies the allegation of FNV.
Good supplies
More than half of Albert Heijn’s supermarkets can still be well supplied, despite the strike in its distribution centers. This is reported by a spokeswoman. In the northeast and southwest of the country, the impact of the strike is visible on the shelves of supermarkets, she says.
This concerns both fresh and non-perishable products, according to the spokeswoman. The supermarkets in question are supplied by distribution centers in Zwolle and Pijnacker. The deliveries from distribution centers in Zaandam, Tilburg and Hoorn to supermarkets in the rest of the country are going well. Moreover, there is no strike in the latter centre.
Workers in five of the supermarket chain’s six distribution centers will go on strike on Wednesday. These are the locations in Zaandam, Zwolle, Geldermalsen, Tilburg and Pijnacker. The strike started on Sunday and was initially expected to last through Wednesday. On Tuesday, however, the unions indicated that they would continue until Albert Heijn comes up with an improved wage offer.
The unions are mainly concerned with the action for extra wages for distribution employees to compensate for the high inflation. They think that Albert Heijn offers far too little pay rise. In addition, they are angry that the retail chain is proposing a deterioration of, for example, the Sunday allowance for new employees.
