Planned strikes have been called off at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners' soft drink plant in Wakefield, England, after a deal was reached to increase workers' pay by up to 18%, the UK's Unite Union said on Tuesday.
Last month, the union announced hundreds of workers at the largest soft drinks plant in Europe would go on strike in June over pay disputes.
'Crippling Strikes'
"Crippling strikes were due to begin tomorrow (Wednesday 14 June) but a breakthrough in negotiations means there'll be no walk-outs this summer," Unite said in a statement.
The deal will see workers' salaries increase by between £3,476 (€4,055) and £3,876 (€4,522) in the first 12 months, with further increases from April 2024, the union said.
Agreed Deal
"The agreed deal at Wakefield is very much in line with the approach we have adopted at other sites, with a 6% headline pay increase alongside other, locally negotiated, items that improve flexibility," the company said in an emailed statement.
"We are pleased that these pay negotiations are now concluded."
The Way We Sell Programme
Meanwhile, CCEP launched a new programme this month, The Way We Sell, for its colleagues to help develop commercial skills and capabilities.
The company's efforts to expand its supply chain will see investments in setting up four new can lines in Australia, Great Britain and Norway, as well as new production lines for the Monster brand.
The project will also see multi-year investments in returnable glass bottles in France, and new or improved automated storage and retrieval systems in the Netherlands and Great Britain.
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