Pay dispute hits Tesco supplier

Staff at three Tesco distribution centres may launch industrial action unless their employer, logistics firm Wincanton, meets pay demands.

Wincanton runs a distribution centre serving Tesco in Doncaster, and has a further two centres in Middleton near Manchester. Staff have rejected a proposed 3.8 per cent pay rise. Wincanton and the Transport & General Workers Union will meet for crisis talks facilitated by ACAS on December 17.

Meanwhile, Sainsbury's is understood to be close to ending a dispute with its depot staff at Haydock in Merseyside. A Sainsbury's spokeswoman said: 'We are close to an agreement, in principle, with the union, which we hope will mean a resolution.'