Diageo to slash jobs at Canadian bottling plant

Diageo has expressed hopes for a “successful conclusion” to its negotiations with workers at a Canadian bottling plant who are facing redundancy and threatening to strike.

Over 100 employees of Diageo’s Amhersburg bottling plant will be laid off

It was revealed last week that over 100 unionised employees would be laid off at Diageo’s Amherstburg plant, which bottles its Crown Royal Canadian whisky – leaving a workforce of 92.

Two Crown Royal product lines in Amherstburg have recently been relocated to plants in Quebec and the US, resulting in a number of redundancies at the plant.

Earlier this month, Amhersburg’s employees who are part of the Unifor Local 2098 union voted in favour of going on strike if job security negotiations were not settled.

D.J Lacey, president of the union, said that he was frustrated at the “slow pace” of the negotiations, which began in November 2013.

“Our demands aren’t over wages or benefits or pensions,” he told The Windsor Star. “We need to get some investment in that plant.”

Diageo and Unifor have now agreed a new deadline for negotiations and the potential strike as 12 February.

A Diageo spokesperson said: “We have agreed with the union that the plant will remain in operation with a significantly reduced workforce throughout the extension period.

“We hope that we will be able to work together to come to a successful conclusion for both parties before the new expiry, and deliver a contract that will enable a sustainable, long-term future for Diageo’s Amherstburg site.”

Following its recent financial results announcement, Diageo CEO Ivan Menezes revealed plans to cut costs by £200 million in an attempt to “de-layer” the business.