Amazon sweetener

AMAZON will offer termtime working for UK parents and grandparents with children to look after.

The new contract enables them to take six weeks off in the summer and two weeks at Easter and Christmas.

The GMB union, which is fighting to be the first trade union in Europe to be recognised by the company, said the flexible working offer was welcome, but most Amazon employees would prefer better wages.

“They’re telling us that they can't live on poverty pay,” a GMB spokesman told the BBC.

Workers at Amazon in

Coventry went on strike for 16 days so far this year, calling for their hourly wage to be increased to £15 (€17.46)

The company, which employs more than 70,000 people in the UK, said it does not believe that union recognition “is appropriate” and prefers to “talk directly” to staff.

Cerealto sacrifices Siro

MULTINATIONAL agrifoods group Cerealto Siro Foods announced that it was closing its Venta de Baños (Palencia) biscuit factory after failing to find a buyer.

When Siro, a household name in Spain, was on the brink of bankruptcy in 2022, it was acquired by the Afendis and Kempner investment funds.

The new owners and workers, together with the central and regional governments, signed a Competitiveness Plan for the group and approximately 1,900 employees.

This guaranteed continuity of employment and production in Venta de Baños, Aguilar de Campo (Palencia) and Toro (Zamora), dependent on finding a buyer for the Venta de Baños factory.

Despite a ‘far­reaching, worldwide search involving 60 potential buyers’, no deal materialised which, under the terms of the agreement, has resulted in shutting down the Venta de Baños plant.

FOR nine hours on May 19 between 10 am and 7pm, Spain generated enough green electricity via solar, wind and hydroelectric power to cover 100 per cent of the mainland’s demand.

Although this has happened before, the supply was not sustained for such a long period, the state­owned Electricity Network of Spain (REE) explained.

Furthermore, this occurred on a normal weekday when consumption was high, not at the weekend or on a national holiday when there was less demand.

The weather was also favourable, with abundant sunshine and moderate wind.

Boots marches on

SEB JAMES, president and managing director of Boots, more than doubled his pay last year.

He took home £3.8 million (€4.4 million) after the pharmacy and beauty chain tripled profits as pandemic restrictions were lifted, reporting a pre­tax profit of £137 million (€159.3 million).

This was £44.5 million (€51.8 million) more than in 2021, a result helped by closing 44 underperforming outlets, according to Boots UK. In all, the company plans to close a total of 200, reducing the number of stores to 2,232 by the end of summer 2023.

OUR esteemed politicians are all still well at it; fully on the ‘campaign trail’ that is. Dontcha just wish they were all actually on that ‘Old Chisolm Trail’ and disappearing over the horizon ­ forever?

Told you the Left would continue its assault on the policies of the right until the general election hove into view. The dissent and misery simply keeps on coming. (If I hear ‘it’s going to get even worse’ one more time……) Even if they can’t specifically blame any of the other parties, or indeed suggest any resolutions, they methodically keep delivering reports which depress the populace so much the voters are virtually prepared to do anything to experience a bit of cheer. The leftie union leaders’ latest disturbing efforts not only managed to disrupt the enjoyment of the football final and Derby racing fans, but even long awaited concerts by popular poppers Beyoncé and Elton John.

One truth you can be assured of is that when you hear a politician tell you