The GMB trades union is warning private contractor G4S that denying full sick pay to cleaners, porters at Croydon’s Mayday Hospital may result in strike action.
Up in arms: the GMB protest takes place on Monday
The union has also accused G4S of lying over the simmering dispute over terms and conditions of work of some of the lowest-paid workers at Croydon’s largest hospital.
Outsourcing giant G4S – which holds the cleaning and portering contract with Croydon University Hospital NHS Trust – has stopped paying covid sick pay to employees, leaving workers reliant on statutory sick pay.
G4S has issued public denials, claiming that they are giving sick pay, but porters and cleaners who catch the virus or are forced to self-isolate, say the evidence is in their wage packets. Or rather, that the sick pay is not in their wages.
The GMB is staging a protest on London Road, outside Mayday, next Monday, January 31, from noon.
Helen O’Connor, GMB’s regional organiser, told Inside Croydon, “GMB members were already angry over the removal of covid sick pay. Now they are absolutely incensed that their employer is publicly accusing them of lying about it.
“Their resolve is hardening by the day; they can see G4S is not taking their welfare seriously and is calling their honesty into question.
“Our members are understandably worried about catching covid and spreading the virus around the hospital to patients and other members of NHS staff. They could do without any additional fears about being able to pay their bills and put food on the table.
“Workers are urging GMB not only to arrange the protest – but to ballot for strike action.
“GMB calls on Croydon University Hospital to intervene to protect the welfare of these employees, and avoid any industrial action.”
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“Outsourcing giant G4S – which holds the cleaning and portering contract with Croydon University Hospital NHS Trust – has stopped paying covid sick pay to employees, leaving workers reliant on statutory sick pay.”
My observation. That’s sick. How mean can you get ? I wonder if senior managers at G4S who have been laid up with Covid suffer the same sick pay terms as the lowly paid workers ?
They have no personal frame of reference with which they could make any relatable policy decisions. If upper leadership is required to self quarantine, barring the need for critical medical care of a management asset, their workflow would adapt without seriously affecting their functionality. Also, they are stinking filthy rich with the lowest entry level positions starting at 35k US a year.
What bothers me the most is that this denial of support for their own managed janitorial and care staff is a violation of GS4’s prime core value statement and internal policy.
I just checked whether G4S’s Wikipedia page has a section for “Controversies” (often a good measure of a company). It doesn’t. It has a whole page dedicated to it.