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Workers at Wilko say the retailer's new contract changes have left them feeling bullied and victimised, with no one to turn to.

"Morale is so low it is untrue," one mum-of-two told the Mirror.

The employee, who has been with the company for almost 20 years, said her concerns over the seven-day working changes have been largely rejected by bosses, who've told staff they'll face disciplinary action if they speak to the media.

"Everyone is really miserable. It just seems like their agenda is to make things as unbearable as possible," she explained.

The changes are linked to seven-day proposals being enforced across the board - which has led to 1,500 workers walking out in a protest against the employer.

Under new guidelines, staff at two of the firm's distribution centres - Magor in Wales and Worksop in Nottinghamshire - will see their rotas shift to seven days, as part of plans to "standardise" around-the-clock working at the centres.

It means those contracted to work occasional weekends, will now have to work more hours by force.

One worker told Mirror Money it feels as through the chain is trying to axe workers.

Another said he feels like it's part of the company's wider plan to avoid redundancy payouts.

Wilko, based in Worksop, reported a £34.8 million profit in the last financial year.

Now, it plans a major shake up to turn the warehouse into a seven-day operation.

"The changes are already in place, and all employees that cannot do it are being bullied and victimised into it," our whistleblower said.

"Some of them are carers or single parents who only see children at weekends. They're just being told just do it or find another job.

"The company was recommended to me by my cousin who was working there as a single mum in the year 2000.

"They were so family-friendly back then. I have 2 children and my partner and I both work, it was a great place to work," she said.

(Image: Google Street View)

"There are two contract types at the warehouse - five to six and five to seven days. Five to six is anyone who started before 2000 - and these workers don't contractually work Sundays. Five to seven staff, however, work any day of the week. Sunday shifts only became permanent in March 2019.

"Under the changes, those on five to six day contract employees are now being made to work every Saturday, and five to seven are being made to work every other Saturday and Sunday. It's the sudden frequency of it all.

"The issue is not that employees don't want to work weekends, they just cannot afford to do so due to commitments such as childcare.

"I have raised my concerns, almost everyone has, but the response has pretty much been, "if you don't like it then leave".

(Image: Google Street View)

"It has been on a downward spiral for a while but you could always speak to the managers if you had any concerns before.

"Now, I don't feel that they care about our wellbeing. This could result in many people going off sick with stress and anxiety as their future employment hangs in the balance.

"Our thoughts and opinions are just falling on deaf ears, it seems like do as we say or leave to be honest."

The worker also claims staff have been told they need to seek permission before speaking publicly on the changes.

"We've been told that anyone who speaks to the media, without speaking to management first, will face disciplinary action. Anyone discussing it over social media will also face the same action."

In another case, one worker who has been at the distribution centre for more than 25 years said the centres are in "turmoil".

(Image: Llanelli Star)

"The morale is absolute zero, and Wilko have just taken it upon themselves to force weekend working without any consideration for their staff or their families.

"They have taken none of the families into consideration," he said.

"For instance - if two members of the same family work there and have young children, who is going to look after the children on a Saturday or Sunday when their parents have been forced to work weekends?

"It seems that Lisa Wilkinson's prophesy of families togetherness doesn't apply to all the staff.

"We have also been dictated to as to when and where can have a drink - coffee or otherwise."

He also claims the move is part of wider efforts to reduce staff without any major redundancy payouts.

"A lot of the older dedicated staff are in their late 50s early 60s and they just cannot work on weekends. We feel that Wilko is trying to force us out."

(Image: Huddersfield Examiner)

Mirror Money put these allegations to Wilko who told us two thirds of staff are in favour of the new weekend changes.

"Two thirds of team members in our distribution centres didn’t vote for a strike in the recent union-organised ballot, however we remain keen to resolve the concerns of those that did," a statement said.

"We are only asking our distribution team members to do what’s already in their contracts. They already work more weekends during peak periods and we are simply asking for this to become normal practice throughout the year in response to increasing customer demand for seven-day shopping.

"We are the last of the major retailers to introduce regular weekend working in distribution centres and weekend working is already established in other parts of our business.

"While we can’t comment on individual circumstances, we share our team member frustrations and are keen to make more regular weekend working as easy as possible."

The grocer said it has now offered 250 people additional weekends off before peak and "have put substantial flexible working arrangements in place so that they can spend the time they need with their families."

"We strongly believe the right way to resolve any differences is through listening, talking and working things through together and are in active dialogue with the union to find a way forward from the current situation."