Workers at a Devon-based glass products company are set to take strike action due to a pay dispute.

A total of 44 employees at DB Glass in Newton Abbot have voted 81% in favour of undertaking six 48-hour work stoppages, beginning on Wednesday,07 June.

Further stoppages will occur on 14, 21 and 28 June, and 5 and 12 July.

The staff will be joining workers from sister company Sierra Windows in Paignton, who have been undertaking a rolling programme of strikes since 26 April due to the same pay dispute. A further nine 48-hour stoppages have now been announced, beginning on Wednesday, 31 May.

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Workers at both sites have rejected a pay deal for the year April 2016 - April 2017 of 1.5%, but would have only been payable from this month. Staff are also angry over shifts being changed unilaterally from five days of seven hours to four days of 12 hours.

Unite regional coordinating officer Terry Keefe said: "Both these firms – Sierra Windows and D B Glass – are part of Specialist Building Products which is a profitable group.

"The overwhelming strike mandate that we have achieved at D B Glass demonstrates the depth of anger at the miserly pay offer and the imposition of new unreasonable shift patterns.

"We have argued that the shift alteration is either not wanted by the staff because of the adverse impact on the work/life balance or because some will lose money under this new arrangement.

"This dispute is spreading across Devon and must be hitting customer orders.

"We reiterate our call to the top bosses at Specialist Building Products to knock some sense into the local management at their two firms, so we can hold constructive talks to resolve the issues at the centre of the disputes at Paignton and Newton Abbot."

(LM)