UK supplies could be affected by Yorkshire workers refusing to ‘work for peanuts’

Pubs and supermarkets across the UK face disruption to supplies of KP Nuts if workers at a Yorkshire KP Snacks factory vote in favour of strikes.
Leigh Jones
By Leigh Jones
Published 17th Jul 2023, 06:00 BST

Union members at KP’s factory in Hellaby, Rotherham are being balloted from today on whether to take strike action to secure pay rises after the company’s profits continue to soar. If workers choose to strike it will shut down KP Snacks’ sole site of nut production and disrupt supplies of KP Nuts throughout the UK.

A total of 135 workers at the Yorkshire KP factory, including cleaners, will have the opportunity to vote on strike action, as their union, Unite, claims that average pay at KP has fallen 14% in real terms since 2018.

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Profits at the company in the same time period have increased from £13.8m to £39.9m in the last publicly available accounts, which track the year ending 31st December 2021. According to those accounts, the company authorised a dividend payment in 2021 of £54,563,470.

Yorkshire workers could disrupt the UK's supply of KP Nuts if they vote in favour of strike action.Yorkshire workers could disrupt the UK's supply of KP Nuts if they vote in favour of strike action.
Yorkshire workers could disrupt the UK's supply of KP Nuts if they vote in favour of strike action.

The snack company’s most recent offer is for a 6% pay increase with a one-off £1,000 payment. The Office for National Statistics’ most recent measure from the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) in May showed inflation at 8.7%.

KP’s 6% pay offer is not extended to cleaners, who according to Unite earn £10.66 an hour. The lowest workers over the age of 23 can legally be paid - the National Living Wage - is £10.42 an hour.

Unite general secretary, Sharon Graham said: “KP Snacks has increased its profits by 275 per cent since 2018. This year workers won’t accept being paid peanuts.

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“To exclude the lowest paid workers from the pay negotiations altogether is corporate greed in action. Especially when KP Snacks made £54 million in profit. The workers have Unite’s steadfast support.”

Unite regional officer, Chris Rawlinson said: “KP Snacks in Rotherham is the sole producer of KP Nuts. So if the strikes go ahead pubs and supermarkets will be hit hard. Unite members are determined to get a fairer portion of the company’s huge profits. It’s time for management to put a serious pay offer to the workforce.”

KP Snacks did not respond to a request for comment.

Related topics:PubsYorkshireUniteRotherham

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