Workers at DS Smith, in Viana do Castelo, called off the strike that should have started today, for having accepted the “excellent” proposal presented by the British paper and packaging production company.
“The reduction in working hours, to 37.5 hours per week, long desired by workers, largely offset the value of the salary increase. It was an excellent proposal and an excellent negotiation for us”, the coordinator of the workers’ committee told the Lusa agency.
José Flores, who is also a leader of the Union of Workers of Manufacturing Industries, Energy and Environmental Activities of the North (SITE Norte), explained that the weekly working hours were not standardized among the approximately 300 workers. Some worked 39 hours a week and others 37.5.
With the agreement, proposed on Tuesday by DS Smith management, “everyone will now work 37.5 hours a week”.
The workers also demand “a 4.3% salary increase, at least 150 euros and a 4.3% increase in pecuniary clauses that include food allowance, prevention and risk premium, among others”.
“The agreement was closed with a salary increase of 4.3% of a minimum of 110 euros and 4.3% in monetary clauses”, he specified.
The workers struck between the 27th and 30th of April and had a strike notice, which ended up being called off, from 00:00 today until 24:00 on Saturday.
The Viana do Castelo factory began construction in 1971, but continuous work began in January 1974.
Currently, the factory is undergoing a modernization process, announced in 2023, worth 145 million euros.
DS Smith is a global leader in sustainable paper fiber packaging, with recycling and paper production operations.
Headquartered in London and a member of the FTSE 100 index, DS Smith operates in 34 countries, employs around 30,000 people and is a strategic partner of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.
Its history goes back to the cardboard box manufacturing business, started in the 40s of the last century by the Smith family.
LUSA
