juice

Workers at a juice-making factory in Somerset which produces products for major supermarkets and works with the likes of Innocent and Del Monte staged a strike over sick pay and shift pattern changes.

Trade union Unite said its members at Refresco Gerber, in Bridgwater, were 'angry' and 'feel betrayed' by planned cuts.

The action was potentially the first of 11 36-hour strikes planned to take place over the next 10 weeks.

A Refresco Gerber spokesperson told BBC News that they were disappointed about the action as they had 'worked hard to protect jobs and pay levels'.

Refresco Gerberproduces supermarket-brand products for Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Waitrose, among other leading retailers, and also works with juice and smoothie brands including Innocent, Del Monte and Ocean Spray.

Unite said the strikes followed 'a refusal by the company to fully negotiate the introduction of cuts to shift and sick pay and the imposition of new shift patterns'.

The first strike concluded at 7pm last night (28 January), and it is believed up to 430 members may have taken part.

Refresco Gerber's spokesperson told BBC News that it had spent four months negotiating with Unite which, on two occasions, had recommended its members accept the new terms.

It said the changes were necessary to remain competitive and secure the future of the business in the long-term.