Where: Assembling opposite Wiltshire County Hall (Bythesea Road, Trowbridge BA14 4YT) before marching to Asda Trowbridge Superstore, The Shires Centre, Trowbridge, BA14 8AT
When: Friday 18 October, 12 noon
Dozens of ASDA workers and a life-size cut out of ASDA boss Manjit Dale will be marching to outside Trowbridge ASDA store to demonstrate their anger over the asset stripping of the supermarket.
Under TDR Capital, Asda’s private equity owners, millions of hours have been slashed from the shop floor as the company desperately tries to service its debt mountain [1] leading to health and safety issues, dirty stores and declining standards.
In Asda Trowbridge alone, GMB estimates approximately 9 per cent of the hours in the store have been cut in the past two years.
ASDA’s shop floor workers – who are predominantly women – are also owed billions of pounds in back pay through their equal pay claim.
In the Trowbridge store this amounts to £1.7 million owed to current and previous ASDA workers.
Nadine Houghton, GMB National Officer said:
“This is daylight robbery of a much-loved British institution with Asda workers and customers paying the price for TDR Capital’s financial engineering.
“TDR Capital are behaving like robber barons and fast becoming the unacceptable face of UK capitalism.
“GMB will not stand by while Asda workers are forced to do more work with less hours and declining health and safety standards.
“The billions of pounds owed to these workers through their equal pay claim grows by the second too.
“Figures released by GMB show the impact that cutting hours is having to your local Asda and how much the workers in your store are owed through their equal pay claim.”