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Staff at one of Glasgow’s busiest cinemas are to begin strike action to protest against working conditions, wages and lack of trade union recognition.<\/p>\n
Workers at the Vue in St Enoch’s Centre told BBC Scotland News they felt they had to act for a number of reasons, including the company not paying for employees to get transport home after late night shifts which end about 02:00.<\/p>\n
The action is believed to the first in Scotland at a cinema and is scheduled to last until 7 January. <\/p>\n
The cinema chain said screenings of films like Wicked For Good <\/a>and Zootropolis 2 at the venue would continue as normal, with temporary staff brought in. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Members of the Unite union voted in favour of striking last month, and about 50 employees are expected to take part in the protest, including picketing the cinema.<\/p>\n Yusuf Kidwai, the lead convenor of the strikes, said frustration with conditions had been growing for some time at the chain.<\/p>\n He told BBC Scotland News: “There is a lot of turnover in hospitality, so there is not a strong union culture in the industry. That’s why it’s amazing what we have been able to do here. <\/p>\n “Vue has told us to complain through the proper channels but we have done that, and nothing has been done.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Mr Kidwai, who has worked at the St Enoch cinema since autumn 2024, said workers want four things from the dispute – to be paid the real living wage, for trade unions to be recognised by Vue, for staff to have better contracted hours, and for paid transport home after late shifts.<\/p>\n He added: “We have screenings that go on until two or three in the morning, and that asks a lot of staff. <\/p>\n “The area around Argyle Street is not safe at night, and you have a lot of young students left to either walk home through unsafe areas or spend half the day’s wages on a taxi.”<\/p>\n A planning committee meeting at Glasgow City Council recently heard how the area around St Enoch’s often suffered anti-social behaviour<\/a>. <\/p>\n Mr Kidwai said he believed workers trained at another Vue cinema would be brought in to replace the striking workers.<\/p>\n Vue is one of the biggest cinema chains in the country, and its city centre venue one of Glasgow’s largest, after the closure of Cineworld<\/a> earlier this year.<\/p>\n Founder and chief executive Tim Richards recently said the company had returned to pre-pandemic trading levels<\/a> this year.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Vue said: “Our teams are at the heart of our business and are highly valued. We continue to have regular meetings and open dialogue with site team members.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n