It takes a lot to stop the seemingly ever trundling conveyor belt at Argos.
But that day happened last Friday - and the reason is an interesting one.
Around 1,000 Argos employees based at five distribution centres down tools for 24 hours in a dispute over terms and conditions, including changes to working hours that could have an adverse impact on their work-life balance.
The changes, part of a five-year transformation plan include a new 24/7 shift pattern, which would see more employees working at weekends.
Matt Draper from the union Unite, said: “The crux to the dispute is Argos’ determination to push through a new 24/7 shift pattern, without offering our members a decent compensation package to offset the severe disruptions to their personal and family lives at weekends.
“In many cases, it is going to cause havoc with childcare arrangements and mean spouses and partners will see much less of each other. The organisation’s plans will seriously undermine work-life balance.
Now each and every industrial relations dispute has its individual complexities of course but there's no doubt that striking a balance between time at work and time at home is becoming a genuine issue for the UK's workforce.
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