M&S stores close as 2,000 workers strike

Marks and Spencer's flagship store on Grafton Street in Dublin is among the majority of the retailer's stores across the country closed for business today due to industrial action.

More than 2,000 workers are on strike having voted almost unanimously to take action following the closure of a pension scheme at the retailer.

The company has 17 stores and staff are picketing at all branches, but according to union Mandate, management has attempted to open two of the smaller outlets in Athlone and Navan using temporary, seasonal staff.

Speaking this morning, Mandate assistant general secretary Gerry Light said the strike is “solid” across the country.

The company’s attempts to use temporary staff to open some stores was “provocative” and “a total abuse” of the workers, he said. Temporary workers “never envisaged when they signed up for work over the Christmas period they would be used in such a crude fashion to effectively break a legitimate and legal industrial dispute”, Mr Light said.

The Marks and Spencer’s defined benefit pension scheme was shut down by the company on October 31st with two weeks’ notice to staff.

It has told staff the scheme has a projected deficit of €12.6 million “20 years down the road”, Mr Light said, though the scheme is actually performing at present and is in surplus of €17.5 million.

Other workers concerns include plans to drop the Sunday pay rate, the elimination of a Christmas bonus and a reduction in numbers of section managers.

Company management have refuted pension figures. In a statement, the company said it is in deficit to the tune of €12.6 million and the figures had been verified by independent auditors Deloitte. They have also said the €17.5m figure is based on a minimum funding standard which is “unrealistic for a scheme with so few retired members”.

The company has also said it did not need to consult with unions about the closure of the pension scheme as it “sits outside the terms of M&S’ agreement with the unions”.

“M&S has had to make some very difficult decisions to protect the long-term good of our business in the Republic of Ireland,” a company spokesman said.

“We have engaged fully and fairly with the unions throughout the entire process and it is unacceptable for them to mislead our employees and customers in this way in order to gain support for this disruptive strike action,” a spokesman said.

On the picket line outside the Grafton Street store, one worker said she had worked for the company for 18 years and had terms and conditions that Marks and Spencers were now trying to change.

“I was given a pension by the company and they just pulled that on 31st of October with two week’s notice,” she said.

“M&S were the first store to open on Sundays on this street and they offered double time for people to work, now they are trying to change that back.”

She also said staff were concerns the company was giving contracts “from one week to the next”.

“New people coming in don’t know whether they have a job next week or not,” she said.

“ That never happened in all the years with this company. We’ve 62 people in there at the moment on week to week.” There are also 340 permanent staff.

Striking was a huge step to take for workers.

“After all these years I feel at the moment it’s unfortunate I’m out on the street; it’s not where I want to be; I want to be in there working,” she said.

“The company have let us down after all these years.”