A bitter dispute between Matalan and hundreds of staff at its Knowsley distribution centre is finally at an end after a pay deal was agreed.
The discount fashion chain announced the news on Tuesday, with the agreement believed to mean a 4.7% increase for employees - the "largest" it has ever offered.
Union GMB confirmed the deal had been struck, which is also understood to include a one-off payment of £90 and pay backdated from July 14 for all staff on core shifts, BusinessLive reports .
The announcement signals the end of around seven weeks of action by staff at the Kirkby site, where employees last week told the ECHO they were "at breaking point" .
A spokeswoman for Matalan said on Tuesday that the deal had successfully passed ballot.
She added: “We are delighted that our employees in our Knowsley distribution centre have voted conclusively to accept the largest core pay offer our company has ever offered, and which is amongst the highest in the sector; we are proud to be a major employer in the North West and always look to ensure Matalan is a great place to work.”
A spokesman for GMB confirmed an agreement had been reached.
Neil Holden, GMB Senior Organiser, said: “This has been an incredibly stressful time for our members. They’ve been on strike for weeks, worrying about how they will feed their families and pay their rent.
“They sacrificed their wages - which were only just above the minimum wage - to do what’s right for them and their colleagues.
“But because they’ve stuck together, and shown solidarity, they can rightly hold their heads high today.
“Now they can get back to work and, along with Matalan, put this behind them."
Members of the GMB union had been taking part in up to three days of action per week since August with the dispute centering around pay for staff at the Knowsley site.
Speaking earlier this month, GMB senior organiser, Neil Holden, said there had been 14 separate days of action since August - often seeing "up to 300 members" demonstrating at a picket line across any given week.
For more great business news from across Liverpool and the rest of the UK, visit BusinessLive .
