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14/10/2003
Industrial action looms at Shorts following talks confusion
Both sides in the current Shorts jobs dispute have blamed each other after the break down of talks following a meeting on Monday night.
Relations between the union representatives and Shorts management have been tense since Bombardier revealed that around 1,000 jobs were under threat after employees rejected a proposed four-year pay agreement earlier in the year.
Today's confusion surrounded which union representatives were supposed to attend the meeting.
Shorts claimed they had been informed that officials from all three unions affiliated to the Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions (CSEU) were to attend the meeting to be held under the auspices Labour Relations Agency (LRA) but in the event only two turned up.
In a statement, they said: "The CSEU withdrawal follows the removal of their mandate by local AMICUS and ATGWU shop stewards thereby excluding not only the CSEU officials but also the GMB union from the talks.
"Only internal representatives of the two unions turned up yesterday but refused to enter talks on all the outstanding issues as originally agreed."
However, union representatives said that because two out of three unions had voted for industrial action, it was more appropriate if their shop stewards were the only union representatives to take part in the talks.
Industrial action by members of Amicus and ATGWU is set to begin this weekend unless the situation can be rectified.
Both sides have agreed the need to find a resolution to the matter as soon as possible.
(MB)
Relations between the union representatives and Shorts management have been tense since Bombardier revealed that around 1,000 jobs were under threat after employees rejected a proposed four-year pay agreement earlier in the year.
Today's confusion surrounded which union representatives were supposed to attend the meeting.
Shorts claimed they had been informed that officials from all three unions affiliated to the Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions (CSEU) were to attend the meeting to be held under the auspices Labour Relations Agency (LRA) but in the event only two turned up.
In a statement, they said: "The CSEU withdrawal follows the removal of their mandate by local AMICUS and ATGWU shop stewards thereby excluding not only the CSEU officials but also the GMB union from the talks.
"Only internal representatives of the two unions turned up yesterday but refused to enter talks on all the outstanding issues as originally agreed."
However, union representatives said that because two out of three unions had voted for industrial action, it was more appropriate if their shop stewards were the only union representatives to take part in the talks.
Industrial action by members of Amicus and ATGWU is set to begin this weekend unless the situation can be rectified.
Both sides have agreed the need to find a resolution to the matter as soon as possible.
(MB)
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