Locked out workers will march from Palmerston North Mediation Services, 61 Rangitkei Street, to McDonalds Rangitikei St at 9:30am on Wednesday 23 November.
ANZCO Foods locked out 100 workers at their CMP Rangitikei sheep processing plant on October 19 for not accepting pay cuts of up to 20%, shift changes and reductions in allowances.
The New Zealand Meat Workers Union and ANZCO CMP will be in mediation tomorrow morning.
ANZCO Foods is the primary supplier of burger patties for McDonald’s New Zealand.
NZCTU president Helen Kelly will announce a nationwide fundraising day outside McDonald’s on December 3 at the picket.
“We have asked McDonalds to support the locked out ANZCO CMP workers against these pay cuts but they’ve done nothing,” she said. “We’re publicizing this to McDonald’s customers and pointing out that along with the nice tasting beef burger is a bad after taste of poverty.”
In London, Britain’s largest union Unite is planning actions against Waitrose, the six biggest supermarket in the UK which is directly supplied by the Rangitikei plant.
Supporters will be invited to “adopt” a McDonalds store by contacting NZCTU Community Organiser Simon Oosterman at cmplockout@nzctu.org.nz or 021 885 410.
