Mayor of London Sadiq Khan backs food processing jobs

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is to sign a GMB trade union charter backing manufacturing jobs, including those in the food sector.

The charter, called ‘Making It’, comes as new GMB analysis revealed that manufacturing employs 110,000 workers in the capital, boosting the London economy by £8.5bn a year.

Food manufacturing is now the largest manufacturing sub-sector in London, employing 24,000 people, it also revealed.  

GMB’s charter is calling on the Government to create an environment that encourages manufacturing employers to invest, a procurement strategy, trade deals, equality, balanced energy policy and the avoidance of tariffs. It also wants strong UK-based supply chains to support local communities.

Celebrate

“It’s often said that we don’t make anything here anymore, but that’s wrong. Our Making It campaign reveals the truth about manufacturing and celebrates the work GMB members proudly do every day,” said Jude Brimble, GMB national secretary. 

“We’re delighted to have the Mayor’s backing for our ambitious charter to support manufacturing jobs in London, with this diverse sector supporting more than 100,000 livelihoods and bringing billions into the capital.”

Shaun Graham, GMB London region senior organiser, raised concerns about the impact of Brexit, highlighting the Government Impact Assessment, which said UK manufacturing could potentially experience significant negative impacts.

Food industry

The potential impact on the UK food industry is of particular concern for GMB London and thousands of our members who work in food production in north-west London any adverse impacts will have a massive impact on those workers and their tight-knit communities,” he said.  

“GMB wants to ensure that our members who work in manufacturing, businesses and politicians are aligned to a positive vision of UK manufacturing for now and into the future.”