Wincanton awards 19% pay increase for Kettering-based Argos warehouse staff

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Around 155 staff based at an Argos warehouse in Kettering, employed by logistics organisation Wincanton, will receive a 19% pay increase by 2022.

The pay deal, which was negotiated with trade union Unite, has been designed to equalise pay among the 300 members of staff based at an Argos warehouse in Kettering, Northamptonshire.

In 2017, 145 employees were transferred from an operating site in Magna Park, Leicestershire, to the site in Kettering; these individuals remained on a higher salary than the existing staff, which led to disruption among the workforce.

The agreed deal ensures that staff on the lower rate of pay will receive a 19% pay increase by 2022, rising wages from £10 an hour to £11.88 an hour. Employees on the higher rate of pay will also receive a payment worth around 6% of salary.

Mick Orpin, regional officer at Unite, said: “[Unite] has now negotiated parity for the workforce by securing a 19% pay increase for the lower paid [employees]. The remaining [staff] also received a payment worth 6% and they overwhelmingly supported the deal. It now means the [employees] are strong, organised and united. This was a complex set of negotiations, but the deal delivers for the entire workforce.”

Wincanton was unavailable for comment at the time of publication.