CHEMIST Warehouse employees have voted to endorse strike action as part of a bid to win a huge pay rise and greater job security, according to a Fairfax Media report.
If they decide at further meetings to go on strike, supplies of non-prescription goods at the company's extensive chain of shops could begin running short within days.
Workers last week voted to back industrial action at three key warehouses on the east coast of Australia, over a claim for a 25% to 30% pay rise and an increase in the proportion of the workforce that is permanent labour.
The strikes could start as early as next week, the report said.
The warehouses in Somerton and Preston in Victoria and Eagle Farm in Queensland are crucial in supplying Chemist Warehouse and My Chemist stores across Australia.
National Union of Workers national secretary Tim Kennedy said its members ''pick and ship over a million items per week'' to supply Chemist Warehouse stores and online orders.
"If strike action is taken, Chemist Warehouse will struggle to meet customer demand," he said.
"Our members at Chemist Warehouse are paid 25% less than industry competitors and yet the owners of Chemist Warehouse are worth over a billion dollars,'' he said.
Company Director Damien Gance did not comment at that time.
Workers at the Preston and Somerton warehouses identify job security as the big issue, with the vast majority of workers on site employed as casuals and labour hire.
The union wants at least 70% of workers to be permanent, rather than the current level of about 25%.
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