Employees of the dairy cooperative FrieslandCampina department in Beilen have stopped work from 10 p.m. last night. They demand higher wages. The strike round will last 48 hours and end tomorrow at 10 p.m.
The staff stands up for a decent wage with good employment conditions and respect for their work.
“We are fighting for a four percent salary increase,” explains Edwin Martirosian, food industry director of FNV. “So far, three percent has been offered, but we are doing everything we can to increase this to four percent.”
Martirosian does not do this alone. “About a hundred people per company are participating in the strike. This afternoon I will receive the employees of FrieslandCampina Beilen on our doorstep. I have arranged food and drinks, there is a fries stall.”
He strongly disputes that the demands of the staff are too strict. “The companies try to paint a negative picture that we have a lot of demands, but you start with a negotiating position and from there you start negotiating. We are currently fighting for that four percent.”
The strike registration is from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM, so there are no day shifts today or tomorrow. Martirosian cannot say anything about the consequences of the strike. “The consequences lie with the employer, they previously indicated that there is little enthusiasm for the strikes and that there are hardly any consequences. Here too I think that the employer is misinforming the media.”
The Dutch Dairy Organization, which is conducting the negotiations on behalf of the dairy company, says that wages in the dairy industry have risen more than inflation in recent years, so that this has now been equalized and employees are therefore at the wage level they would otherwise have been at.
The company therefore believes an increase of 3 percent is enough. “We really find the actions unnecessary and irresponsible.”