News Archive
27th of February 2004
Porters and Domestics in strike ballot
Portering and domestic staff working at North Manchester General Hospital are currently being balloted over whether or not to take industrial action over a claim for higher pay. Although the staff work within the NHS, they are employed by ISS Mediclean, a private contractor. ISS Mediclean took over these services in the days when the Tories were in power. New Labour has failed to end the two-tier system whereby contractors make huge profits out of the public sector and firms such as Mediclean quite literally, 'clean up'.
In the three other hospitals in the Pennine Acute Hospitals Group, the domestic staff are 'in-house', that is, directly employed by the NHS and besides being better paid, have better policies to protect them at work and perhaps more importantly, have access to the NHS Superannuation Scheme. At Fairfield, only the domestic staff work for Mediclean, the porters being 'in-house'.
One reason given by ISS Mediclean for refusing to meet the pay demand is that Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust is refusing to put more cash into the contract and is still insisting on crippling efficiency savings. Meanwhile, the staff exist on poverty wages.
WE URGE ALL MEMBERS TO VOTE 'YES' FOR INDUSTRIAL ACTION IN THE BALLOT.We will keep you updated on future developments.