Partnership agreed between Britishvolt and Unite over workers at gigaplant

Julia Potts, Head of Employee Relations at Britishvolt, and Suzanne Reid, Regional Co-ordinating Officer with Unite the Union, sign an “Enabling Agreement”.

Britishvolt and Unite the Union have signed an Enabling Agreement for Unite to represent workers at the company’s full-scale Gigaplant in Cambois.

The gigaplant will employ around 3,000 workers when at full capacity of around 38GWh by the end of the decade and another estimated 5,000 in the associated supply chain.

A commitment has been made to work in partnership over the next 12-months on a single union agreement for workers at the battery manufacturing plant.

An artist impression of Britishvolt's gigaplant in Cambois.

Julia Potts, head of employee relations at Britishvolt, and Suzanne Reid, regional co-ordinating officer with Unite the Union, signed an “Enabling Agreement” which is the first step towards a recognition agreement at the Cambois site.

Julia said: “This truly is a once in a lifetime opportunity to get things right, not only for the planet, but also the workers vital to a successful switch to a sustainable future.

"Low-carbon sustainable battery cells are essential for a successful energy transition, but so too are the people that manufacture the cells.

"With the support of Unite and through the BV FutureGen Foundation the company will retrain and reskill the workforce needed at the Gigaplant.”

Steve Turner, assistant general secretary for Unite, said: “Unite welcomes Britishvolt’s commitment to work with Unite looking forward to creating a proactive relationship at a time when they are providing an exciting opportunity creating high quality and skilled jobs for the local area.

"It is clear that Britishvolt are at the forefront of the JUST initiative, the transition towards a climate-neutral economy in a fair way that leaves no one behind and I urge Government to support them in their efforts.

"Unite looks forward to supporting Britishvolt in this new era for manufacturing.”

Graham Hoare, President Global Operations, Britishvolt, said: “This partnership underscores Britishvolt’s belief in the importance of Environmental, Social and Governance [ESG].

"We aim to be the employer of choice, and by working with Unite we are engraining this.

"Low carbon batteries will be essential to meet society’s net zero targets, but just as essential, if not more so, are the people that build those batteries.”