LAST YEAR we featured several articles looking at Diageo.

Formed in 1997 from the merger of Guinness plc and Grand Metropolitan plc, Diageo is the largest multinational beer, wine and spirits company in the world.  Its brands include: Smirnoff, Johnnie Walker, Captain Morgan, Baileys, J&B, José Cuervo, Tanqueray, Guinness, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines, and Bushmills Irish whiskey.

According to Diageo “we employ over 22,000 talented people worldwide with offices in around 80 countries.”   Manufacturing facilities exist in Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa, Australia, India and the Caribbean.  It trades in over 180 markets around the world.

Until the end of December last year, two of its European facilities were based in Scotland – in Kilmarnock and Port Dundas in Glasgow.  Nearly 1000 people were employed in the company's bottling and distillery sites.

In July 2009, Diageo announced that they were closing the Johnnie Walker blending and bottling plant in Hill Street, Kilmarnock.  700 jobs would be lost.  The Johnnie Walker brand has been associated with Kilmarnock for nearly 200 years.

However, that wasn’t the end of it.  The multinational giant also wanted to throw more Scottish workers on the scrapheap.  Another 200 jobs would go with the closure of the historic Port Dundas Grain Distillery in Glasgow.

Solidarity Trade Union had repeatedly opposed Diageo’s outrageous plans.  Indeed, by the middle of September last year, we’d proposed a three point programme designed to save these Scottish jobs: 
i)  Step Up The Campaign,
ii) Occupy The Sites? 
iii) Nationalise Diageo?

In early October, Solidarity General Secretary Patrick Harrington amplified the first point of the plan.

He called for the Scottish Trades Union Congress – STUC – to massively step up the campaign to defend jobs at Diageo.  The whole of Scotland should be made aware of the terrible decision to slash hundreds of jobs.

In July last year, around 20,000 people marched through the centre of Kilmarnock to protest against Diageo.  Similar sized marches should have taken place in all of Scotland’s main cities and towns.

Sadly, the STUC didn’t organize the massive demonstrations required to keep up the fight.  Indeed, the Unite and GMB trades unions even closed down their campaign against the job cuts.

With this lack of action and support, is it any wonder that the Diageo workers accepted a redundancy deal just days before Christmas?

With Kilmarnock and Port Dundas out of the way, all eyes are on Shieldhall in Glasgow.  For the moment, Diageo say it will stay open – but who knows what the future holds?

In an attempt to focus minds on any future threat to more Scottish jobs, Mr. Harrington has recently amplified the second point of the Solidarity plan.

If more jobs are slashed “Diageo workers at Shieldhall may consider occupying the site until the company drops its plans.  Last year Visteon workers in West Belfast successfully occupied the former Ford car parts factory. This was in protest at paltry statutory redundancy payments.  In the end, the workers got a successful deal.  Diageo workers might do the same.”

So what happened at Visteon – and how could workers at Diageo learn from this sit-in?

At the end of March last year, Visteon workers in workers in West Belfast started an occupation of the former Ford car parts factory.  Administrators KPMG had only offered the 200-plus workers paltry statutory redundancy payments.

They were angry at the decision of the Ford Motor Company and Visteon Corporation to put the plant into administration.  Previously when Ford have shut down a plant they have provided proper redundancy packages.  Some people had worked for 30 years at the plant and were due to get next-to-nothing if the plan went ahead.

As soon as the plant went into administration, it was occupied by around 140 people.  They hoped to keep the plant open - but if this wasn’t feasible, they wanted their proper redundancy packages.

The five week occupation was a total success!  By early May Ford/Visteon bosses agreed a redundancy deal.  Most workers received a substantial settlement.

Mr. Harrington said:

“The action – and substantial victory at Visteon – is worthy of further study.  It could set the template for further action at Diageo.  A small number of workers in Ulster took on a massive transnational corporation, and won.  A small number of Scottish workers could do the same!  Diageo workers in Shieldhall need to be wary of Diageo’s future plans.”

He also reiterated his call for a mass broad front campaign.  To save Scottish jobs, everyone needs to be involved.  This would include the trade unions, all political parties, community groups, churches and any other interested group.