The AMWU wants people to boycott Streets icecream.

There has been a breakdown in negotiations between workers and the company's owner Unilever.

Unilever wants Fair Work Australia’s permission to terminate the current enterprise agreement.

Unions representing the workers say that would leave up to 140 workers at the Streets factory in Minto, NSW, with a pay cut of up to 46 per cent.

Steve Murphy from the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union says the public should join the fight.

“The Australian public, when they go into the local shop or the local servo deciding which type of ice cream they're going to buy that makes them feel good, they want to know that the workers that have made that product are being treated fairly,” he said.

“And we think that the Australian public will make that choice between supporting workers in struggle or supporting corporate greed.”

Sixteen months of negotiations had led to the formation of an in-principle agreement with the unions, but this was voted down by employees.

Mr Murphy described Unilever’s petition to the FWC as the “nuclear option”.

“If you're running an ice cream factory during an Australian summer you can't lose money — it's a very profitable site,” he said.

“These workers are left with no other option because Unilever has stopped listening, but to seek the support of the Australian public.”

Unilever Australia general manager Anthony Toovey rejected the union’s claim.

“We want to keep making Streets locally but the current situation is just not sustainable and needs to be addressed,” he said.

“If anyone has their finger on the nuclear button here is it the union and all a boycott will do is hurt workers and local manufacturing.”

He said the Minto factory had become too costly to run.

“It is currently 30 per cent cheaper to import a Magnum from Europe, including 16,000 kilometres of frozen transport, rather than make it at Minto,” Mr Toovey said.

“If the union doesn't want Streets to become the next Holden or Ford they need to shelve their calls for a boycott.”