Workers Solidarity Movement

STRIKING workers at Coca-Cola HBC Ireland let bosses know they are not giving up this week. Around 700 protestors marched from Liberty Hall to the company’s HQ on Baggot St. on Wednesday, 14 October. The march was organised by SIPTU and supported by trade unionists, left groups, and the Workers Solidarity Movement (WSM).Workers have been on strike since the end of August at bottling plants across the country. The strike began when the company announced that it would be outsourcing its distribution and warehousing services to private contractors.

The 130 workers facing the sack were told that they could apply for their jobs with one of the private contractors, but their contracts were terminated. The marchers paid tribute to the Thomas Cook workers as they passed the premises on Grafton St. The Cook workers were forcibly removed from the building by Gardaí at the beginning of August having taken direct action following a similar announcement on redundancies.

The WSM fully supports the direct action taken by the Cook workers, and more recently by Dublin Port workers. WSM member Donal Ó Fallúin stated: “The WSM will continue to support the striking workers at Coca-Cola HBC, and hopes that the example set by Thomas Cook and the Port workers will not be forgotten when taking on the bosses.”