DHL Supply Chain is facing widespread industrial action following its decision to close its Sheffield and Ebbw Vale Tradeteam depots and cut hundreds of logistics jobs.
Union Unite said the decision to close the depot at Sheffield is “about as brutal as it gets” and will ballot for industrial action at Tradeteam depots across the country, if talks later this week do not reach a resolution. The union is also seeking similar assurances on jobs at the Ebbw Vale site.
The closure of the Sheffield depot at the Tinsley Industrial Estate will see 200 warehousing and driver jobs lost. The workforce is currently on furlough. It is unclear how many jobs are threatened at Ebbw Vale.
Tradeteam is DHL’s specialist drinks distribution arm that used to deliver to more than 30,000 pubs, bars and other trade outlets each week.
Customers served from Sheffield include Carlsberg, Coors, Mitchells & Butlers and Whitbread whilst Ebbw Vale customers include Carlsberg, Greene King, Molson Coors and SA Brian.
Unite logistics national officer Matt Draper said: “This is a disgrace and about as brutal a wielding of corporate power as you will see across the UK employment landscape.”
He added: “DHL has taken the taxpayer for a ride here, as it must have known it was going to shut Tinsley, but decided to use furlough to avoid paying wages.
“Now it wants the taxpayer to continue to pick up the bill as it throws employees on the scrapheap.”
He called on DHL Tradeteam to revoke its decision “or face the prospect of a national strike, once the lockdown is eased”.
Turning to Ebbw Vale, Draper said the union will be seeking “similar job assurances for our members in South Wales” and called on DHL to “row back on its flawed decisions, otherwise a national ballot, including the option for strike action, is very much on the cards – the ball is in the company’s court.”
A DHL Supply Chain spokeswoman said: “In light of challenging trading conditions and the impact of the coronavirus, which has shut down the UK hospitality industry for several months, we have reviewed our Tradeteam drinks logistics operation and concluded that we can support our north east customer base with two, rather than three, depots.
“As a result, we propose to close our site in Tinsley, Sheffield in July this year. This is a difficult decision but a necessary one to protect our business for the long term.
"Affected staff have been informed of the situation and will shortly enter into consultation with the company and nominated representatives to discuss their options, including transferring to Tradeteam’s expanded operation at Tingley, Wakefield, or redeploying to other DHL sites in the Sheffield area.”
She added that DHL is also proposing to close its Ebbw Vale site and reallocate the work to its Swansea and Gloucester depots.
She said: “Affected staff have been informed of the situation and will shortly enter into consultation with the company and nominated representatives to discuss their options, including transferring to our operations at Swansea and Gloucester or redeploying to other DHL sites locally.”