Delivery company DPD faces claims of firing drivers who slammed pay reductions

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People say DPD has fired workers out of "spite" after they spoke up against a plan to slash thousands from their pay, including their Christmas bonus.

The company, which made almost £200m in profit before tax last year and plays a big part in the Christmas rush to get gifts and packages delivered, has even warned some staff it might keep some of their money to cover the cost of replacing them, the Guardian has found out.

DPD fired workers after about 1,500 self-employed drivers decided not to work for three days to protest the company's plans.

The company told workers earlier this month that it intended to reduce the rate it pays for most deliveries by 65p on September 29.

Drivers said the cut, which amounted to up to £25 a day, and the cancellation of a £500 Christmas bonus, would cost each worker more than £6,000 a year - and up to £8,000 for those who take on many more deliveries during the Christmas season.

A lot of drivers said they wouldn't work for the company for three days. The company met with worker representatives and agreed to push back the pay cut until after Christmas, but said it would still happen. Drivers reported that within weeks of the meeting, managers began to target people they saw as "ringleaders".

"Now that we've embarrassed them in public, they're just trying to show who's boss and control drivers they don't want to hire," said Dean Hawkins one of the fired drivers.

He played a part in setting up the action and a DPD manager informed him he'd lost his job for breaking a confidentiality clause in his contract. "It's payback to show who's boss after we embarrassed them," he said.

A DPD spokesperson said: "We can confirm we've ended our ties with eight supplier companies after they breached their contracts."

DPD Group UK's top-earning director got almost £1.5m, including bonuses last year, which means a pay bump of over £90,000 from 2023.