Infectious diseases cleaning team at hospital begin strike over pay
Dozens of infection control workers at a major hospital walked out on strike action this morning, in a dispute over pay.
The workers who form the ‘rapid response team’ at Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospitals in Lambeth will continue strike action for the next four days, according to union Unite.
The team clean highly infectious disease areas in the hospitals to stop the spread of contagious illnesses.
According to Unite, the hospital staff have been denied the new national minimum wage which is set to rise to £12.21 an hour in April.
As band two workers, their base pay is currently just £12.08 an hour. They receive an additional £2.77 an hour from High Cost Area Supplements (HCAS) which are payments made to NHS staff who work in London to help with the cost of living.
According to the union, workers have also reported a lack of access to sanitisation areas to clean themselves thoroughly after working, denied permanent contracts and refused overtime pay to help cover staff shortages.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “During Covid, the Rapid Response Team were the frontline defence against outbreaks and are trained to be the first responders against the spread of other infectious diseases.
“These are some of the most valuable workers in the NHS doing unseen work to keep patients and other staff safe. Yet they are being treated with disdain by the trust.
“For these workers to not be able to clean themselves properly after finishing work or to have humane conditions to rest in is a disgrace.”
Previous strikes by the Rapid Response Team scheduled for January 27, to 31, were called off to allow talks to take place.
But, Unite regional officer Tabusam Ahmed said: “The lack of any meaningful progress has now led to Unite calling new strike dates.
“Our members are rightly furious about the situation they’ve found themselves in. This is absolutely unacceptable.”
A spokeswoman for Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust said all cleaning shifts will be covered for the duration of the industrial action to ensure services remain “unaffected”.
She said: “We want all our staff to feel supported at work which is why we have been working hard for many weeks to bring an end to this dispute with our rapid response cleaners.We have listened to their concerns and made several changes to address them.
“It is regrettable that Unite are determined to press ahead with this industrial action despite the progress we have made together.
“We remain committed to working with our staff to resolve this dispute as soon as possible.”
Pictured top: St Thomas Hospital (Picture: Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Trust)