The agreement means that workers at the firm’s flagship manufacturing site in Leominster, Herefordshire, have secured the right to negotiate for improved pay, terms and conditions.
Signed last week, the agreement covers around 130 workers at the facility and will see GMB negotiate with bosses on behalf of staff, including over an annual pay deal.
The development marks the first-ever union agreement at the KP Snacks-owned company’s Herefordshire site, where employees hand-make crisps on the farm where Tyrrells was founded in 2002.
Tom Warnett, GMB senior organiser, said: “This landmark deal is the first of its kind at this famous company, making some of the UK’s favourite crisps. It has come off the back of dedicated work by our GMB reps on site.
“We look forward to working together with the company to keep high-quality jobs making a high-quality product.”
He continued: “Workers across Herefordshire and in food manufacturing across the country are organising through GMB Union to get a seat at the negotiating table. With new powers under the Employment Rights Act, this agreement is a sign of things to come.”
The news follows KP Snacks’ decision in February to close Tyrrells’ Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, site after opting to shelve non-potato crisp production because of a “sustained decline in demand and the loss of key export volumes”.
KP Snacks acquired Tyrrells from The Hershey Company in 2018.
