Industrial unrest: Biscuit workers walk out over 2pc pay deal

Staff at the factory in Uddingston, Lanarkshire – home of the Tunnock's teacake, snowball and caramel wafer – decided to go ahead with the strike after pay deal talks broke down.

Tunnock's made an offer of a 2 per cent rise but staff voted at a meeting on Wednesday to go ahead with the 24-hour walkout while workers are balloted on the figure, Unite said.

Around 60 workers involved in the strike action waved Unite flags and chanted "we want fair pay" outside the factory on the corner of Old Mill Road, some holding placards with the words "fair pay" and "we don't want crumbs".

Tony Devlin, regional industrial organiser for Unite, said: "Our main intention all through these negotiations was to seek a negotiated resolution and settlement around the negotiating table.

"Unfortunately we haven't managed that, which has resulted in our members being out on strike today. Our members here and the workers at Tunnock's are angry and they feel undervalued."

Mr Devlin said workers had also been angered by directors awarding themselves "significant dividends mounting into hundreds of thousands of pounds".

Around 360 workers are involved in the strike action.

A second strike is scheduled for September 28 and there will also be a continuous overtime ban and work-to-rule. Workers will formally vote on whether to accept the 2 per cent offer in a ballot due to close on October 4.

In London, union leaders have been urged to resume peace talks over strike threats by Tube workers.

London Underground has written to the two main unions involved, calling on them to return to negotiations to break the deadlocked dispute ahead of a second strike next month.

The two sides spent six hours at the conciliation service Acas on Wednesday but the meeting ended without agreement.

The unions staged a 24-hour strike earlier this month in protest

against plans to cut 800 jobs.