The trade union Unite has said today (Tuesday, March 19) that workers employed at a New Holland tractor factory in Basildon are being balloted for strike action over pay.
Unite has claimed that strike action at the family could “severely compromise the supply of New Holland tractors” which are shipped across the world from the UK site.
The ballot for strike action opens on Wednesday (March 20) and closes on April 10.
New Holland is owned by CNH Industrial, the equipment and services company that also counts Case IH and STEYR among its stable of global brands.
New Holland
According to Unite, workers at the New Holland tractor factory in Basildon are angry that CNH Industrial has “reneged” on a pay agreement reached in 2022.
According to the union a two-year deal was agreed in 2022 that would have seen a weekly pay increase of £40 for year one, with a potential pay increase of up to £100 a week in year two.
However, Unite said today: “CNH is instead offering 4% for 2024, rather than the 7.4% it should be under the original agreement.
“For 2025, the company is offering the rate of inflation as of December 2024.”
Latest financial accounts show that CNH Industrial reported full year revenues of $24.7 billion for 2023 – up 5% year on year.
Unite’s general secretary, Sharon Graham said: “CNH is a hugely wealthy company, but is choosing to short-change Basildon workers out of sheer greed.
“Unite made an agreement with the company over pay in good faith and CNH must stick to it.”
According to Unite’s regional officer, Michelle Cook, potential strikes at CNH Basildon could result in “global shortages of New Holland tractors”.
CNH
In its full year accounts for 2023 CNH Industrial forecast that 2024 global industry retail sales will be “lower in both the agriculture and construction equipment markets when compared to 2023″.
It said that while projections vary among geographies and product types, in the aggregate for key markets where the company competes CNH estimates that agriculture industry retail sales will be “down 10-15% and construction equipment industry retail sales will be down around 10% when compared to 2023”.
