Cadbury collective settled as consultation ends

Consultation over proposed redundancies at Cadburys' Dunedin operations has finished and the union and the company will meet on Thursday to discuss the outcome and the timeline for changes.

Maintenance workers at the site recently ratified a deal with the company that includes a six and a-half percent increase for 21 months, a ten percent increase on the shift allowances and the caps removed on redundancy and sick leave payments when being made redundant removed altogether.

EPMU organiser Mike Kirwood says the ratification means members are heading into the restructuring process knowing where they stand.

"By getting a good deal and having it finished before any redundancies our members will now be able to approach the changes with a good idea of what they will mean to them.

"The redundancy and sick leave changes in particular will mean any workers that are made redundant will get a much better entitlement than they would've under the last collective," says Kirwood, "that doesn't make any redundancy good but it does mean workers will be in a better position when and if they come."

Cadburys workers are represented on-site by both the EPMU and the Service and Food Workers Union.