Strikes could hit supplies of Irn-Bru this summer due to pay dispute

Irn-Bru supplies could be under threat this summer as it has been confirmed that A.G. Barr members have balloted on strike action in a dispute over pay.

Workers at the Cumbernauld production and distribution centre rejected a 5 per cent pay pay offer meaning that around a dozen trucker and shunter drivers could go on strike. The offer equates to a real-terms pay cut of 6.3 per cent, based on the current RPI rate of 11.3 per cent.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said:“Imagine a hot summer in Scotland and no supplies of Irn Bru - Scotland’s other national drink - to quench raging Scottish thirsts. Well that’s exactly what’s on the horizon if the management of A.G. Barr don’t revise their current wage offer to Unite members. In reality, what’s current is a brutal real terms pay cut.

“It is a cash rich company with £52.9m sitting in the bank, so they have the money to make a decent offer. Our members can be assured that they will have Unite’s total support in this fight.”

Andy Brown, Unite industrial officer said: “Unite’s members keep the Cumbernauld factory of A.G. Barr running smoothly. Without them it will undoubtedly have a big impact on production and distribution. It is the first potential dispute in the history of the Cumbernauld factory which goes to show how angry our members are at the pay offer on the table.

“We are demanding that A.G. Barr get back round the table and make our members a fair offer or else the supply of brands such as Irn-Bru could be hit by any strike action this summer.”

The ballot for industrial action closes on the July .