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YOU MIGHT HAVE seen a new Coca-Cola drink on Irish shelves over the last few days, but what exactly is it?
Coca-Cola Life is the green-branded drink that has just launched all over Ireland, and it’s confusing some people out there as to what it is – and why it’s green (no, it’s not related to Ireland in any way).
Apart from the packaging, not really. According to the company, Coca-Cola Life is sweetened with a blend of sugar and stevia leaf extract (which is green) – and both are naturally sourced. However, it has faced criticism that its sugar levels are still very high.
Pope Francis / Twitter
Pope Francis / Twitter / Twitter
With its 89 calories Coca-Cola Life has a third fewer calories than the standard red Coke, and it also has less sugar. By all accounts it tastes very similar to the red Coke, but some connoisseurs will probably notice a difference in texture.
Given both Diet Coke and Coca-Cola Zero are calorie-free offerings, Life would appear to sit slightly away from those and closer to the original Coca-Cola in terms of its potential marketing.
Coca-Cola has committed to ”provide consumers with increased choice of reduced, low and no-calorie beverage options and also to reduce the average calories per litre in its range of sparkling drinks by 5% by the end of 2015.” This new drink would play into that aim, anyway.
Raymond Tobin / Twitter
Raymond Tobin / Twitter / Twitter
Stevia is a zero calorie sweetener derived from the leaves of the stevia plant – and it’s the unique selling point of this new drink.
Stevia extract has been approved by the European Union as an additive for food and drink, but there are concerns out there over the nature of sweeteners like it. The extract can be up to 300 times sweeter than sugar – and it’s already used in Sprite here, which is also owned by Coca-Cola.
Yes. Last year it was introduced to the UK and the US, and the year before that Chile and Argentina (where it was first created) had it on their shelves.
Daniel Gurney / Twitter
Daniel Gurney / Twitter / Twitter
Confusion reigns, but we hope this cleared some things up.
By David Elkin for DailyEdge.ie
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It’s illegal to not allow a 15 minute paid break after 4 1/2 hours work. Disappointing to see tesco dragging their feet about breaking the law
It’s simple folks, if you disagree with this – and you damn well should, don’t shop there. When these stores begin to see even a tiny drop in their profits they’ll suddenly find their conscience.
Or they will close it and all the jobs are gone.
@Ger As long as it’s profitable they won’t, but would you seriously want this threat held over our heads forever? We have to allow jobs like this, with low pay and illegal conditions, we have to take the crumbs from the table and suffer in silence, be grateful for it or else we’ll have no jobs at all. Seriously???
Meanwhile these stores won’t reveal their profits in Ireland, they won’t let us know just how much they’re making here but they have to do so in the UK by law. Why do you think that is?
If we enforced our legislation properly (which we more or less are above) there won’t be a need to boycott anything
No 2 FF/FG while it’s illegal not to allow a break, it’s my understanding that it doesn’t have to be a PAID break in all cases. It depends on the contract.
Ger
They won’t close.
They will pay up and they all should pay up. In the meantime we should boycott Tesco or at least spend less there.
Every little helps!
@Ger. People will not stop shopping – they’ll just go elsewhere, and the staff will follow them to where there is better working conditions.
Tesco have been making huge profits here for many many years – way above the rate in UK arm of company. They can afford to pay the staff.
Tesco should be fined as well as forced to give back pay.
Thats correct Jimmyjoe. But in this case they were treating one group of employees different. They were discriminated against in that all the other people who do the exact same job in the company get paid breaks, yet they were singled out.
Had it been in your job and two people sit side-by-side doing exactly the same work, and one gets paid for the 15min break and the other doesnt, that would be discriminatory too.
The Conrad hotel does not pay staff for breaks ,also pays normal rates for working Christmas Day ,it’s been getting away with this for years .
Report them
Conrad hotel is no different so to the rest of the Hospitality Sector. Most of them anyway.
No hotel or restaurant pays breaks, I haven’t had a paid break in 15 years, get over it!!
I even worked in one place, who took the hour pay out of your wages, and still no break was given!! Ha!!
On another note, are all employees entitled to Sunday premium pay in all employment sectors, does anyone know?
There are some exemptions. Chefs for instance. Chefs also never get a decent break and eat standing up in the kitchen when things quieten down for 2 mins. Its an industry wide thing in chefing.
No
I think companies can decide to pay you extra on Sundays, but they’re not obliged to.
They should pay up in total, if they don’t it’ll set a precedent and the likes of tescos will say no pay for breaks and when brought to court pay a percentage of the pay due and be financially better of than if they pay the full amount.
They should Tesco and sue the miserable b’stards!
Any improvements over at Dunne’s?? I’ve boycotted them for about 2 years now. Miss my vouchers. Wouldn’t mind a rummage round.
Full time contracts are still “on the table” no indication whether they’ll ever be picked up and actually given to staff
My boycott amounted to nothing so Ryan….
Tescos ‘Every little helps ‘ except if you work for them !!
Should everybody get paid breaks.my two breaks are unpaid on a 9 hour shift ? If so I’ll be due 10 years compensation
Yeah you’re supposed to get fifteen minutes paid break if you’ve worked 4.5 hours.
Just sent an email to siptu to try clarify it
Yes, you are entitled to a break of 15 minutes after a 4 ½ hour work period but there is no entitlement to be paid during these breaks and they are not considered part of your working time.
As it says in the article the paid breaks are part of Tesco’s own company guidelines, hence the legal action.
I doubt that the Bailieboro store is even making a profit…unlike the Tesco store in Cavan town where the workers appear to take their break outside on the pavement.
have your say