FURIOUS workers at a town centre cafe have gone on strike.

Those on the picket line at Brogans say their lives have been made impossible by food and hygiene challenges, a broken dishwasher, day-to-day rota changes and intimidating behaviour from the management.

But those in charge have rubbished the claims and are threatening staff with court action over two days of lost trade.

The independent shop opened in Havelock Square in July 2019 following a refurbishment but workers say it has had a high staff turnover since.

One protester – a kitchen worker for the cafe who did not wish to be named – said all seven of the staff members were taking part in the strike.

He said: “We turned up to meet bosses and they arrived half an hour late and refused to talk to us because not all of the staff were present.

“Some had days off and some were on holiday so they were using that as an excuse to not discuss.

“The new owners abuse the zero-hour arrangement and have effectively fired and re-hired me twice within a month without due process.

“They expected me to work to high standards with faulty equipment and a constantly changing workforce.

“The staff turnover is so high as they don’t manage the workforce in a humanely respectable manner

He added: “One of the owners sent working hours via WhatsApp as late as 1am the day employees are due to work. We feel that working rights are disregarded and basic hygiene standards are ignored.”

Strike action has taken place outside the cafe for the past two days but Vajay Kumar, a member of the management team, hit back.

He told the Adver: “They don’t know what they’re doing.

"There is hot water working here, everybody can make allegations.

“This strike has had a lot of impact.

"We’ve lost two days sales and I will take them to court.

"I will not take them back. I’m teaching them a lesson.”