Ryan FowlerCouncillors in East Riding were met by protests at the council’s full meeting in Beverley, sparked by revelations about the council’s pension fund investments in Pemberton Asset Management. The firm owns Oscar Mayer, a Wrexham-based ready meal producer embroiled in a bitter industrial dispute over fire and rehire practices affecting hundreds of workers.
Unite, the union representing the striking workers, is urging the council to suspend further investments in Pemberton until the controversial fire and rehire plans are halted. The council’s pension fund currently has £40m invested in Pemberton, split between £26.57m allocated via the Pemberton UK Mid-Market Direct Lending Strategy and £13.45m via the Pemberton European Mid-Market Debt Fund I.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham condemned the council’s financial involvement with Pemberton, stating: “East Riding councillors will be furious to learn that the council’s pension fund is supporting a company that is prepared to use the most abhorrent employment practices towards its workers. Pemberton Asset Management is doing its reputation and business relationships irreparable damage by trying to fire and rehire Oscar Mayer’s workers. Unite will not stop fighting until these horrific plans are scrapped.”
Oscar Mayer’s Wrexham factory workforce, comprising about 600 employees, has been on strike since September in response to the company’s attempt to impose new contracts that could cut their annual pay by as much as £3,000. The dispute has gained national attention, given the company’s significant presence in the UK ready meal market, supplying major retailers such as Tesco, ASDA, Greggs, Aldi, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, and the Co-op.
Pemberton Asset Management owns 85% of Oscar Mayer, placing it at the centre of the industrial unrest. Unite’s calls for action and the ongoing protests highlight mounting public and political pressure on the council to reconsider its financial ties with the firm amid the unfolding crisis.
