Global food producer Princes has announced that it has reached a mutual pay agreement with the GMB Union, giving a 3% pay increase to members across UK sites.

The agreement follows months of negotiations, with Princes stating that it demonstrates its “ongoing commitment to providing fair and reasonable remuneration for its employees, despite the challenging economic conditions currently prevailing in the UK and Europe”.

GMB members at Erith and Belvedere sites will now receive the 3% pay award backdated to April 2024.

Angelo Mastrolia, chairman of Princes, stated: “We see this agreement as a positive step towards maintaining the long-term stability of the business while continuing to support our employees. I am grateful to the GMB Union for their constructive approach to the negotiations and their understanding of the wider economic challenges faced by the business. We remain committed to resolving the remaining disputes at other locations as soon as possible.”

Princes has also been engages in pay negotiations with Unite, offering an above-inflation 3% pay increase. This follows pay increases over the past five years: 8% in 2023, 7% in 2022, and 2.5% in 2021, along with a one-off cost of living payment of 4.1% in 2022. The producer stated that all of these pay increases were above inflation.

It has also offered to back pay the 3% pay rise for 2024 to its employees whilst the dispute continues, which Unite has refused. As a result, both parties have registered a failure to agree and therefore talks have ceased.

Princes reassured its customers that while ongoing Unite action is “disruptive to sites”, there is no risk of shortages of its products and that all affected sites have contingency plans in place.

Mastrolio continued: “We operate in a highly competitive market. In addition to a highly demanding customer base, we increasingly have overseas competitors seeking to take business outside of the UK food and drink manufacturing sector.

“The Princes board have to constantly balance operational costs – including wages – while staying competitive and being able to offer favourable conditions for colleagues evidenced by the agreement with GMB. Industrial action as we are currently experiencing with Unite does nothing but put our sites and jobs at risk.”