Shortage of dips, soups and wraps blamed on Bakkavor strike

The company confirmed about 400 staff, one-third of its Splading workforce, were currently on strike in a dispute over pay.

Mr Hennessy said: “The power is with the employer to come to staff with a decent pay offer that will be accepted,” and added Bakkavor’s position was a “simple case of corporate greed”.

However, Bakkavor’s chief people officer, Donna-Marie Lee, said: “We have engaged the union in discussions since the start, and our CEO met with them recently out of a genuine desire to resolve the issue.”

She said a discretionary bonus of £350 per person and an above inflation pay rise were tabled for workers at the Spalding site, but rejected by the union.

Mike Edwards, CEO at Bakkavor, said: “The union has a right to campaign, but our responsibility as a business – to our colleagues, customers, shareholders and to the communities in which we are a major employer – is to be sustainable, and fair, for the long term.”

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