DISGRUNTLED Honda workers have turned to the internet to air their anger over working practices.

Since the website, www.hondaswindon.com was set up less than a year ago it has had more than 70,000 hits.

The creator of the site, Chris Watson, who lives in Chatsworth Road, Abbeymeads, says he has been inundated with messages from workers, who say they are being unfairly treated by management.

Mr Watson, 40, left the car giant eight years ago, but his wife still works there.

He told the Evening Advertiser that the main issue is with working hours.

"The management say that they must do a reasonable amount of overtime but what is reasonable?

"My wife tells me that things are not too good at the moment, and this is a global car company which spends millions on advertising."

As previously reported, around 18 months ago the workers' union, Amicus, held lengthy talks with bosses and discussed compulsory overtime.

An agreement was reached where, in normal circumstances, staff could only be asked to do an extra one hour per day overtime.

Only in emergencies such as system breakdowns could they be made to work a second hour.

Although Jim D'Avila, spokesman for the union, concedes that management are not presently breaching the agreement he says Honda are taking a heavy-handed approach.

He said: "It seems that a lot of the workers are using the website to vent their frustration.

"The management's approach to get them to do more hours is causing a lot of bad feeling in the plant."

One anonymous message left earlier this week reads: "I'm all for doing a hard day's work for decent pay. But the management here have had it their own way for far too long and now people are questioning them about certain things they are getting worried because it makes them look incompetent."

The worker predicts a bleak future for the workforce.

"We all know what is happening and we all know what will happen in the future," he said.

"At the moment we are selling our cars. In fact we can't make enough of our cars 'every car we make has a customer waiting' is the usual line given to us."

He said he and his fellow workers are being pressured into working extra hours, leaving them little time for their families.

"We go to work when it's dark and come home when it's dark. We don't see our kids and when we do we are too tired to play with them or are just short with them.

"Then we come to work and feel guilty and down all day because tomorrow we will be more tired and more niggly."

The worker predicts a slump in demand around Easter, which will see a stockpile of cars.

He said: "I know it's going to happen and the management know it's going to happen.

"We won't have made a profit; rumours will be floating around about No.2 plant closing and No.1 plant going on days.

"The target will go down to 400 a day over both shifts and we'll get penalised."

But a Honda spokesperson has hit back and stressed the site is not official and has no links whatsoever with Honda.

She said: "The overtime is required for the launch of the new Civic model to satisfy our customer's requirements.

"This is good news for the plant.

"The overtime is in line with our policy and procedure."

Kevin Shoesmith