News
Tesco’s new deal: Good or bad?

TESCO, who have 2,620 stores throughout the UK and 14 within the Herald’s coverage area, are to slash wages for many employees by the time they receive their next pay cheques, which is hidden by a blanket increase to wages nationally, staff say.
The Herald was contacted by a current employee of the retail giant who found out about the cuts earlier this year after working for the company over the last two decades.
They explained that although across the board staff are to receive very slightly higher wages, those who work unsociable hours and Sunday shifts will be detrimentally effected.
THE CUTS
The cuts will come in the form of bonus reductions; staff will no longer receive double time for Sundays and Bank Holidays, and those working night shifts and overtime hours will no longer receive the same increases, with some staff claiming they’ve been told overtime will be paid at the standard hourly rate.
On Sundays and Bank Holidays, the formerly doubled pay will be reduced to just time and a half, a reduction of 25%.
The employee who contacted The Herald notified us that they thought the increases to staff wages were only being implemented to mask the reductions which the retailer is making, to allow the national media to hide that staff are going to suffer from the changes.
THE INCREASE
Nearly a quarter of a million Tesco store staff will receive a 3.1% increase in basic pay this year under a new ‘deal’ that includes the cuts to holiday and night-time bonuses.
Established staff at Tesco will qualify for the increase and will get £7.62 an hour starting from July, some 42p over the £7.20 minimum wage for over-25s.
New employees to the company will see their pay rise £7.20 to £7.24 in July, which was increased from £7.04 to fall in-line with the national minimum earlier this year.
SOFTEN THE BLOW WITH A PAY-OUT
The Herald was told that as a sweetener, employees who were to be most affected by the bonus changes would be receiving a sum of money to make up the difference for a short period of time.
We were told that compared with the length of time they and others had been at the company and how long they intended to stay, the payment for the short period was not good enough.
Tesco have said that 85% of staff would be better off under the pay deal and that those who had been negatively affected would be handed a lump-sum payment worth 18-months of the difference in pay.
HOW DOES THE RETAILER’S PAY COMPARE?
Online statistics show that Tesco’s pay increase will put them above Sainsbury’s and Asda who currently pay national minimum wage (£7.20), but compared with companies like Lidl, Aldi and Morrison’s all of whom offer around £8/hour, the retailer falls short.
Matt Davies, the chief executive of Tesco in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, said: “We’ve spent a lot of time working with [trade union] Usdaw and colleague representatives to understand what’s important to colleagues.
“Together, we have agreed one of the highest pay and benefits packages in retail for store colleagues, and introduced a simpler and fairer pay structure, including one approach to premium payments.
“As well as an increase in pay, which puts our hourly rate well above the government’s national living wage, we remain absolutely committed to rewarding our colleagues with a pay and benefits package they really value, including a pension, colleague discount and 5% turnaround bonus.”
Pauline Foulkes, a national officer at Usdaw, said the total package for Tesco staff, including a 5% turnaround bonus that employees are on track to receive this year, was well ahead of the living wage and was one of the best in retail: “We believe the deal is the best that could be achieved in the circumstances and represents a significant investment in pay and benefits.”
Crime
Waste dumped at recycling centre leads police to drug factory near Cardigan

Man jailed after drug discovery sparked by vigilant staff
A TIP-OFF from staff at an Aberystwyth recycling centre has led to the discovery of a large cannabis factory in a derelict property near Cardigan — and landed a 20-year-old man behind bars.
Manuel Nerguti was sentenced to six months in prison at Swansea Crown Court on Friday (July 11) after pleading guilty to producing a class B drug.
The court heard that on May 1 this year, workers at the Aberystwyth recycling centre reported a suspicious delivery: four to five bags of cannabis stalks, apparently dumped by men in a hired Ford Transit van.
Police acted quickly and intercepted the van later that afternoon on the road between Aberystwyth and Cardigan. Nerguti and two other men were arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of cannabis, but were released without charge at the time, as no grow site had been located.
However, a month later, acting on new intelligence, Dyfed-Powys Police executed a warrant at a derelict house in Bridell, near Cardigan. Inside, they discovered a sophisticated cannabis cultivation operation: 260 mature plants spread across five rooms and an attic, with the electricity supply illegally bypassed.
During the raid on June 7, Nerguti attempted to flee but was found hiding behind a washing machine in the garage.
He was charged and later pleaded guilty to producing cannabis.
Detective Constable Sam Garside, who led the investigation, praised the recycling centre staff for their quick thinking.
He said: “This result is thanks to the staff at the recycling centre for recognising that criminal activity was taking place and for alerting police quickly.
“We rely on the public to inform us of anything suspicious going on in their communities and we encourage people to get in touch if they suspect anything. We were able to use our local knowledge and police intelligence to execute a successful warrant and shut down an illegal cannabis factory.
“We are committed to continuing our drug operations across Dyfed-Powys and bringing offenders like Nerguti to justice.”
Police estimate the cannabis seized had a potential street value of up to £242,000.
More information on Operation Scotney — Dyfed-Powys Police’s campaign to tackle cannabis cultivation — including how to spot signs of a drug grow, can be found on their website.
News
Pembrokeshire County Council group to review ‘climate emergency’

A CALL for a group to review Pembrokeshire County Council’s decision to declare a climate emergency some six years ago has been backed by councillors.
In May 2019, the council declare a climate emergency following a notice of motion by Cllr Joshua Beynon calling on the authority to back the global consensus that climate change poses a risk to the well-being of future generations.
He had urged county councillors to back a motion to take “bold, decisive action” to fight “truly, catastrophic” climate change.
He called on the council to commit to becoming a zero-carbon local authority by 2030.
At the July meeting of Pembrokeshire County Council, a notice of motion by Cllr Mike Stoddart called for the establishment of a working group to review the decision made by the council to declare a climate change emergency.
Cllr Stoddart’s motion said: “Given the turbulence on the global financial markets; the parlous state of the UK’s public finances; Pembrokeshire County Council’s projected funding gap; and the government’s softening of its policies on the switch to EV vehicles and heat pumps, this council establishes a seven person, politically balanced working group to review the authority’s decision to declare a climate emergency at its meeting on May 9, 2019.
“The working group will be asked to: (a) examine the effect of the emergency declaration on the level of council tax in Pembrokeshire and particularly the extent to which any such increases militate against the authority’s anti-poverty policies.
“(b) The cost of decarbonising the council’s housing stock and the effect this has had on the authority’s ability to finance the building of new housing.
“(c) The extent to which the council’s decarbonisation programme has contributed to a reduction of the risk of runaway global temperature increases, and (d) any other effects that the working group considers may have adversely impacted the wellbeing of the residents of Pembrokeshire.”
Cllr Stoddart’s notice of motion was previously supported at the June meeting of the council’s corporate overview and scrutiny committee, with a recommendation to full council in July meeting, to reinstate the Net Zero Working Group to review the contents of the notice of motion and, subject to the outcome of this review, review the future delivery of the Net Zero Action Plan.
Cllr Stoddart’s call was backed by Cllr Steve Alderman, and Cllr Rhys Jordan, who said: “I fully support this, it couldn’t come sooner; around England and Wales councils are looking at this, there’s been a huge push for a ‘net zero’ agenda at any cost, I don’t think we’re in a position to drive that.”
Cllr Aaron Carey said: “We’ve set ourselves some lofty goals, but we haven’t got the money to back it up.”
Members overwhelmingly agreed to back the June committee recommendations.
News
Urgent appeal to save 1,000 hens in Pembrokeshire and beyond

British Hen Welfare Trust seeks homes before Friday deadline
AN URGENT appeal has been launched to find homes for more than 1,000 hens due to be rehomed next weekend – including from a rescue centre in Boncath, Pembrokeshire.
The British Hen Welfare Trust (BHWT) is coordinating the rehoming effort on Saturday (July 26), aiming to rescue ex-caged hens from slaughter and instead place them into loving homes. The appeal also covers rehoming centres in Locking, near Bristol, and Kineton in Warwickshire.
The charity says the hens have come to the end of their commercial egg-laying lives, but remain healthy and can thrive as pets. However, they must be rehomed by Friday (July 25) to avoid being needlessly killed.
“This is a time-sensitive and visual story that resonates locally,” said Andy Hill, Marketing & Communications Officer for the BHWT. “These hens have worked hard their whole lives and deserve a second chance.”
The organisation recently marked the rehoming of its one millionth hen – which was adopted by King Charles III – and the upcoming effort is part of its continued mission to improve hen welfare across the UK.
Local spokespeople are available for interview, and high-resolution images are available for media use.
For more information or to register interest in adopting hens, visit: www.bhwt.org.uk
Image for illustration purposes only
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