Tata steel workers vote for strike
Around 1,500 Tata steelworkers based in Port Talbot and Newport Llanwern, UK, have voted for industrial action.
It is the first time in over 40 years that Port Talbot steelworkers have gone on strike.
The strike is over plans to close its blast furnaces and shed 2,800 jobs.
The union Unite says Tata has other options after the union secured a commitment from the Labour Party that it will invest £3bln in UK steel, compared to the £500mln pledged by the current government.
Strike dates are to be announced soon.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham says, ‘This is an historic vote. Not since the 1980s have steel workers voted to strike in this way. This yes vote has happened despite Tata’s threats that if workers took strike action, enhanced redundancy packages would be withdrawn...
‘Other EU countries are transitioning their steel industries while retaining and growing their capacity because they know steel has a bright future – a tenfold increase in demand is predicted in the coming years.’
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