AB InBev brewery worker ‘not dismissed for raising health and safety concerns’

Brewing giant AB InBev has refuted claims made by the GMB Union that a former employee was fired for “raising health and safety concerns,” as members of the union are given the opportunity to vote for strike action.

According to the GMB Union, former employee of the AB InBev brewery in Preston, Paul Morley, was unfairly dismissed after questioning health and safety policy.

GMB stated that Morley was sacked for claiming that there had been insufficient assessment into the fatigue caused by a new initiative designed to speed up the brewing process.

The union has now held a ballot for strike action with the results expected this week.

Morley, the former senior health and safety representative, was dismissed for “refusing a reasonable management request,” according to the brewery.

Shaun Buckley, GMB regional organiser called the move “a disgrace”.

“Paul Morley has been sacked simply for trying to look after the wellbeing of his colleagues,” he added.

“GMB understands management may want to streamline processes – all we ask is they follow the appropriate health and safety assessments in doing so”.

Responding to the claims, a spokesperson for AB InBev told the drinks business: “As a responsible brewer and business, health and safety is our number one priority. While we can’t go into detail on individual or ongoing employee cases, we want to emphasise that the employee in question was not dismissed for raising health and safety concerns.

“We take our commitment to health and safety seriously and ensure that all processes adhere to our high standards, as well as to legal requirements. The safety of our processes has been confirmed using a certified assessment tool from the UK body, the Health & Safety Executive (HSE).

“As part of our focus on the health, safety and wellbeing of our colleagues, we will continue to have a dialogue with trade union representatives”.

Last week, AB InBev announced that it was restructuring the business to boost revenue growth, after reporting in its half year results that combined revenues for its three global beer brands – Budweiser, Stella Artois and Corona – were up 9.1%.

The brewer said that it wishes to “simplify” the geographic structure of its business, reducing its total number of management zones from nine to six.