Macallan distillery engineers to go on strike in rota dispute

Engineers at three Speyside distilleries, including for the famous Macallan whisky, have announced a series of strikes starting next week.

In a dispute over rota changes, engineers at Edrington’s distilleries will begin seven days of strikes on Monday November 10.

A further 22 days of strike action are planned between November, December and January.

The GMB trade union said there had been 100% support for strike action among the 12-strong staff.

Union officials say rota changes mean staff will be working more days for less money.

Lesley-Anne MacAskill, GMB Scotland organiser in the Highlands, said: “Our members are absolutely united in their determination to protect the rota from needless and hugely disruptive change.

“The unanimous support for action is only one indication of how badly managers have handled this issue and the determination of workers to find a fairer way forward.

“Their willingness to mount sustained industrial action over a period of months is another.”

She added: “Our members have engaged with negotiations but every one of their constructive suggestions for alternative rotas were summarily rejected.

“This is a small team of skilled workers critical to the successful operation of these distilleries and their expert voice should be heard and heeded.”

A spokeswoman for Edrington said: “We are deeply disappointed that the GMB ballot has chosen to take industrial action.

“We have been in constant dialogue with the 12 engineers involved since January and we have already made significant changes and compromises to our original proposal.

“We have a responsibility to balance the requirements of our distillery operations in a way that is fair to all our people and the compromises on working hours for our engineering team are now appropriately aligned with the other teams and the needs of the business.”