They Were Heroes During Covid. Now They Are Fighting for Fair Pay. We Must Stand With Them.
They Were Heroes During Covid. Now They Are Fighting for Fair Pay. We Must Stand With Them.
Branch Secretary Blog — John Burgess, Barnet UNISON
On Tuesday 13 October, Barnet UNISON announced that our members working for The Barnet Group had voted overwhelmingly for strike action.
88% voted YES on a 55% turnout.
That is a powerful result, and I want to explain why this dispute matters to every Barnet UNISON member, not just those working for The Barnet Group.
Who are The Barnet Group workers?
The Barnet Group (TBG) is a company wholly owned by Barnet Council. It includes Barnet Homes, which provides housing services, and Your Choice Barnet, which provides social care and support services.
These are not optional services. Housing and social care are essential public services which councils have statutory responsibilities to provide or arrange.
Our members include care and support workers looking after vulnerable adults, and housing workers helping residents with their homes, repairs and housing needs.
They are public service workers. They work for organisations owned by Barnet Council. But they are not treated the same as Barnet Council employees.
Many members reading this may be surprised to learn that TBG workers do not automatically receive the same pay, annual leave, sick pay, overtime rates or other terms and conditions as Council staff.
They also do not have the same access to the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS).
How can that be right?
Remember when care workers were called heroes?
I want members to think back to Covid.
When much of the country was told to stay at home, our care workers continued going to work.
They supported vulnerable residents who depended on them. They worried about catching Covid, about passing it on to the people they cared for, and about bringing it home to their own families.
They went to work because people needed them.
Remember the weekly applause? Remember people standing outside their homes banging saucepans to show their appreciation for NHS and care workers?
They were called heroes then. So why are they still fighting for fair pay, decent conditions and pension rights now?
You cannot pay the rent with applause. You cannot pay your energy bills with praise.
And you certainly cannot build a decent retirement on warm words.
One Council. Two Workforces. That Must End.
Barnet UNISON has been campaigning for years against outsourcing and the creation of a two-tier workforce.
Barnet Homes and Your Choice Barnet were once Council services. Moving them outside direct Council employment has left workers doing essential public service jobs without the same contractual protections and benefits as their Council colleagues.
Our members are demanding better pay and conditions, including improved annual leave, sick pay, working hours, overtime rates, a fair pay structure and access to the LGPS.
The Barnet Group has rejected the claim.
Our members have responded by voting for strike action.
Nobody takes a decision to strike lightly, especially workers who care for vulnerable people and support residents.
But when employers refuse to negotiate seriously, what choice are workers left with?
This is why Barnet UNISON is calling on The Barnet Group and Barnet Council to sit down with us and negotiate a fair settlement.
My Message to Every Barnet UNISON Member
I have spent 31 years representing workers in Barnet, including 23 years as Branch Secretary.
I have seen what outsourcing does to workers. I have seen the divisions it creates, the inequalities it produces and the damage it can do to morale.
I have also seen what happens when workers stand together.
Our TBG members have shown courage. They have voted to challenge their employer because they believe they deserve better.
Now I am asking every Barnet UNISON member reading this blog to do something simple.
Take a few minutes to send a message of solidarity to our housing and care workers.
It doesn’t have to be long. Just a few words to let them know they are not alone.
You might work in a school, a library, a depot, an office or another Council service. You might never have met a TBG worker.
That doesn’t matter.
We are all UNISON members, and when one group of workers is fighting for fair treatment, they deserve the support of the rest of us.
Please email your message of support to contactus@barnetunison.org.uk.
I will make sure our TBG members get to read your messages.
I want them to know that thousands of fellow UNISON members across Barnet recognise their fight and stand alongside them.
They were there for our community during Covid.
Now it’s our turn to be there for them.
Solidarity.
John Burgess
Branch Secretary
Barnet UNISON