Shankul Bhandare
The strike at Port Talbot steelworks has been canceled following Tata Steel’s offer to initiate fresh discussions with trade unions regarding future investments at the plant, which is set to lose 2,800 jobs and close its last blast furnaces.
Members of the Unite trade union were set to commence industrial action on 8 July, shortly after Tata’s scheduled process that marks the end of over 70 years of steel production from scratch at the site.
On Monday, Unite confirmed the strike’s cancellation after Rajesh Nair, Tata Steel’s UK head, reached out to unions over the weekend to propose new talks on future investments at the south Wales facility.
Community, representing more steelworkers than Unite and sometimes differing with its sister union on safeguarding Port Talbot workers, welcomed the decision.
“Tata confirmed readiness to resume discussions on a potential memorandum of understanding, through the multi-union steel committee chaired by Community,” said Alun Davies, a Community national officer.
“Tata never abandoned these talks, and in our last meeting on 22 May, all unions agreed to conclude negotiations and present the outcomes to members. While we welcome restarting discussions, we regret no progress has been made since 22 May.”
“With thousands of jobs at stake, we support Unite’s decision to withdraw their strike action and return to the table with sister steel unions.”
The Guardian has sought comment from Unite and Tata Steel UK.
Tata had initially planned to close its second remaining blast furnace by the end of September, with the first shutdown process set to start this week.
The plans were accelerated following Unite’s announcement of indefinite strike action starting on July 8. Tata Steel stated it could not maintain safe and stable operations at the plant during a strike, prompting the advancement of the complete closure of the second furnace to as early as July 7.
The new electric furnace is scheduled to begin operations in 2027, and unions advocate for steelmaking to continue until that time. Discussions, as reported by The Guardian, would center on future investments.
