Business
Union calls off strike for further talks on future of Welsh steel
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THE UNITE UNION has decided to call off a strike planned for July 8 to allow for further discussions about the future of the UK’s largest steelworks at Port Talbot in Wales. The Pembrokeshire Herald has been informed that this decision comes amid concerns over the potential accelerated closure of the site’s remaining blast furnaces.
Owners Tata had previously warned of the possibility of bringing forward the closure of both remaining blast furnaces, citing safety concerns due to a staff walkout. Unite’s proposed strike had drawn criticism from other unions, who feared it would hasten the shutdown of blast furnace number four, initially scheduled for closure in September.
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Both the Community and GMB Unions were hoping to use the time until September to negotiate an extension of the furnace’s operational life, potentially under a new government.
The UK government has pledged a £500m grant to develop a new £1.25bn electric arc furnace. This new furnace, designed to recycle scrap metal, is less energy-intensive but will require significantly fewer staff. The closure of both blast furnaces would result in the loss of 2,800 jobs, whereas extending the life of one furnace could save 2,000 of those jobs until the new electric arc furnace is operational, a process that could take up to three years.
Sources close to the situation told the BBC that Unite had given Tata an excuse to accelerate job losses by planning the strike. However, Unite officials refuted this, claiming their action “had helped focus minds” and resulted in a victory by ensuring further talks after the upcoming election.
In a letter from Tata to the unions, the company had already agreed to further discussions post-election. Alun Davies, national officer for the Community union, commented: “Tata have confirmed that if the strike is called off they are ready to resume discussions on a potential memorandum of understanding. The truth is Tata never walked away from those discussions, and at our last meeting on 22 May all unions agreed to conclude the negotiations and put the outcome to our members. Community would welcome resuming those discussions, but we regret that zero progress has been made since 22 May.”
Officials from other unions criticised Unite, stating that their actions had caused “nothing but chaos” and financial losses for their members. This comment refers to an earlier overtime ban that Unite implemented without consulting other unions.
Union officials admit there is no guarantee Tata will agree to extending the life of the blast furnace beyond its scheduled shutdown in September. However, they express hope that if Labour wins the election, their manifesto commitment to invest £2.5bn in the steel industry could provide a crucial lifeline.
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Samuel Kurtz MS, Welsh Conservative Shadow Minister for Economy and Energy, commented on the latest developments: “We welcome any discussions that bring both the steelworkers and Tata to the table to iron out how best jobs can be supported in the short term, as an early closure of the blast furnaces will bring additional distress to communities already dealing with enough as it is.”
He further criticised the Welsh Labour government, saying, “The Welsh Labour government have only paid lip service to Tata’s workforce, failing to contribute a penny to the transition board, and UK Labour’s manifesto says nothing on what it would do differently to support Port Talbot’s steelworkers.”
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “This is a significant development in the battle to protect jobs and the long-term future of steel making in South Wales. Investment from Labour secured by Unite will be key to the future of the site.
“This breakthrough would not have come about without the courage of our members at Port Talbot who were prepared to stand up and fight for their jobs. Workers were simply not prepared to stand idly by while steel making ended and their communities were laid to waste.
“It is essential that these talks progress swiftly and in good faith with the focus on fresh investment and ensuring the long-term continuation of steel making in South Wales.”
Business
New directors are ‘leading the way’ at solicitors firm
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SOUTH-WALES based JCP Solicitors has recently appointed two new Directors, demonstrating the law firm’s commitment to developing future leaders. This double promotion names Lauren Protheroe in Medical Negligence and Ben Davies in Property Litigation as Directors at the award-winning business.
Starting her legal career at JCP Solicitors in 2014 on an Undergraduate Placement Scheme with Swansea University, Lauren Protheroe became one of the first candidates at JCP to be offered a training contract whilst only a 2nd year law student. Since then, Lauren’s career has gone from strength to strength, becoming a leading expert in Medical Negligence in the region, successfully concluding cases of surgical errors, delays in diagnosis, orthopaedic and ophthalmic injuries. Lauren also works with the team’s most experienced practitioners on multi-million-pound complex birth injury matters.
Ben Davies joined JCP Solicitors’ Property Litigation team in 2019 as an Associate Solicitor. Ben has since made his name supporting local and national clients with a broad range of complex property disputes and has substantial litigation experience, having assisted in securing numerous successful outcomes at trial for his clients. Ben is quickly establishing himself as the go-to professional in South Wales for providing legal advice to residential landlords, due to his expertise in dealing with residential possession proceedings under the new Renting Home (Wales) Act.
Hayley Davies, CEO at JCP Solicitors, said: “Lauren and Ben both exemplify our core values and client-focused approach. Both were named in the 2024 Legal 500 as key lawyers in their respective teams, further strengthening our offering in their specialist practice areas.
“All our promotions demonstrate our commitment to professional development and finding our business owners of tomorrow, as we strive to support our people to get the most out of their careers. I look forward to seeing the development of Lauren and Ben’s careers as they continue their professional journey at JCP.”
To find out more about JCP Solicitors, visit jcpsolicitors.co.uk.
Business
New state of the art Pembrokeshire creamery officially opens
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- Welsh milk sourced, processed, and bottled exclusively in Wales
PEMBROKESHIRE CREAMERY has officially launched its cutting-edge milk processing facility in Pembrokeshire, marking a significant milestone in its mission to bring ‘fully Welsh’ milk to Welsh consumers.
The creamery opened on Tuesday (Jul 2). It is the only BRCGS-accredited liquid milk facility in Wales, meaning it is the only facility able to supply major retailers in Wales with Welsh milk. By removing the need for Welsh milk to be transported to bottling plants in England, Pembrokeshire Creamery is reducing food miles, increasing supply chain efficiency, creating new skilled jobs, and supporting local farming communities.
Pembrokeshire Creamery, which has created around 80 new jobs, has the capacity to bottle more than a million litres of milk a week and has recently announced major deals to supply own-branded milk to Asda and Lidl stores across Wales. When the dairy reaches full capacity, it will be able to supply around 2 million litres of milk a week.
![](https://pembrokeshire-herald.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/The-new-Pembrokeshire-Creamery-site-1-1024x640.jpg)
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The development of Pembrokeshire Creamery was initially supported by the Welsh Government and Pembrokeshire County Council when they formed a joint venture to create the Pembrokeshire Food Park. This was instrumental as it created the plots and infrastructure required (drainage, water, and power) for Pembrokeshire Creamery to locate its new state-of-the-art dairy.
Subsequent Welsh Government support was awarded with £5 million grant funding through the Food Business Investment Scheme and an additional £1.4 million of grant funding from the Food Business Accelerator Scheme.
Funding support has also been provided by HSBC and to date, nearly £20 million has been invested in the site to process high-quality Welsh milk that is farmed, bottled, and sold in Wales.
![](https://pembrokeshire-herald.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Pembrokeshire-Creamery-MD-Mark-McQuade-speaking-at-the-official-opening-event-2-July-2024-1-1024x683.jpg)
The company recently announced plans to support the development of a second milk processing line and automated trolley fillers, meeting the growing demand for locally sourced Welsh milk while ensuring the industry’s future sustainability.
Commenting on the opening, Mark McQuade, managing director of Pembrokeshire Creamery Ltd said: “This has been a great opportunity to celebrate our early successes and all that means for the people that we’ve employed and the dairy farmers who we work with. We’re creating new markets with major retailers for authentic Welsh milk which in turn is helping us complete our mission to deliver sustainably sourced Welsh milk, bottled right here in Wales while offering a fair and transparent price to farmers.
“We are already committing to more investment and increasing our capacity – and we would like to thank all of the people locally, our staff and suppliers, who have supported us as we’ve built and opened our new state-of-the-art facility,” he said.
Huw Irranca-Davies, Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, said: “I am delighted that the new Pembrokeshire Creamery has started processing Welsh milk for Lidl and Asda. This new facility, supported by Welsh Government Rural Development investment underlines the commitment of the Welsh Government to the dairy sector in Wales. This investment ensures that milk which previously had to be transported to England is now processed in Wales. As a result, Welsh consumers will now be able to buy Welsh milk, produced in Wales.
“This commitment is part of our vision for achieving growth and productivity improvement which benefits the workforce, people and society. It also supports the industry to reach high levels of sustainability, raising the Food and Drink industry’s reputation in Wales, the UK and overseas,” he said.
Led by an experienced team, Pembrokeshire Creamery emphasises fair pricing for farmers who tirelessly produce high-quality Welsh milk. Their commitment extends to paying a fair market-related price for dairy farmers, environmental sustainability, and animal welfare, which is consistent with their aspiration to be at the forefront of the dairy industry.
At the heart of Pembrokeshire Creamery’s mission lies a commitment to sourcing 100% of its milk from Welsh cows, reducing food miles, and supporting local farming communities. Their ultimate goal is to be the leading supplier of Welsh milk.
Images Martin Cavaney/Pembrokeshire Creamery
Business
Jobs confidence in Wales pushing up pay expectations
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WORKERS across Wales are showing above-average confidence in their job prospects, with pay expectations set to increase as a result. That’s according to the latest Robert Half Jobs Confidence Index (JCI) – an economic confidence tracker produced in partnership with the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr).
The data revealed that two-thirds (66%) of Welsh workers are confident in their job over the next six months, above the national average of 60%. This optimism is translating into heightened pay inflation expectations, with workers across the country indicating hopes of an average pay rise of 4.6% this year, above the national average of 3.8%.
Interestingly, though, fewer employees in Wales suggested that they would take some form of action – such as seeking a new role in their current business or changing employers – than the national average. Less than half (43%) of Welsh workers would take action if a salary increase wasn’t an option this year, compared to 68% of UK respondents overall.
James Fortnam, Market Director, Wales, Ireland & Scotland at Robert Half, commented: “Job confidence across Wales is clearly high and there are likely a number of reasons for this. Growing skills shortages coupled with the recent reports that the country has the highest rate of economic inactivity are no doubt leading to staff feeling optimistic about demand for their skills. While this has created an environment where pay rise expectations are higher than the national average, employers can be somewhat comforted by the fact that fewer people are likely to take direct action if they don’t receive the salary increase they are after. Of course, that doesn’t mean that businesses can ignore these high levels of confidence. Instead, it should be a catalyst for firms to consider their holistic employment packages and how elements such as tailored benefits packages or career progression programmes can act as more effective attraction tools.”
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