Sixty hospital cleaners, catering workers, and their supporters from the Liverpool sacked dockers lobbied the "Aintree Trust" (Fazakerly Hospital) Health Authority meeting on 10 November.
Domestic and meal delivery staff at Liverpool's Walton Hospital are fighting to ensure that their jobs are protected when the site closes and all facilities are transferred to Fazakerly Hospital on 18 January. "Aintree Trust" is expected to take a final decision on their fate on 8 December.
Sylvia Tighe, a cleaner with 20 year service at Walton Hospital whose husband is a sacked docker, was cheered as she addressed the dockers weekly mass meeting a few days after confronting the Health Authority.
"I went in to the Health Authority with two Unison stewards and our Branch Secretary, and asked to speak," Sylvia told the dockers. "These are our jobs and we want them. We all have families to feed, just as you have," she had told the Health Authority directors. "We work for £3.69 an hour, which is disgusting! Now you are trying to tell us we are too expensive." One of the Authority panel members, Dr. Robin Walker, asked what problem Fazakerly contractors RCO had with the current Walton workforce. "The problem is that they would inherit their present wages and conditions," the Authority informed Dr. Walker.
Fifty Unison members employed as cleaners by the contractor "Initial" face the dole queue. Dining room staff are affected as well.
Despite a T.U.P.E. (Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment) ruling in their favour, requiring that all the workers concerned be transferred to the new employer with their pay and conditions protected, RCO is refusing to take them on.
Ten years ago, the cleaners faced the privatisation of ancillary services that swept through the NHS. They won two "in-house tenders" but were eventually forced into employment with a private contractor "Taylor Plan" which also operates at Broadgreen Hospital and the Royal Liverpool University Hospital. Their sick pay was cut from 6 months to 1 week. Five years after an Industrial Tribual ruled in their favour, the workers are waiting for their money. Eventually, "Initial" took over the contract.
In January last year, a few domestic workers were transferred from Walton to Fazakerley and taken on by RCO, retaining their terms and conditions won at Walton. Now with the imminent closure of Walton, RCO is refusing to take on the remaining domestic workers, ignoring the T.U.P.E. ruling.
Meanwhile "Initial" are using the T.U.P.E. decision to avoid any redundancy payments, as the workforce should be transferred to the new employer.
The meal delivery staff are employed directly by Walton Hospital and are currently working their 90 day notice.
The Health Authority's willingness to get rid of staff with 20 years (and more) service on the grounds that £3.69/hour is "too expensive" flies in the face of Government talk of a "minimum wage". Unless of course the minimum wage is to be set at £3.50 an hour...
Messages of Support:
Peter Ballard
Branch Secretary, UNISON
Walton Hospital
Rice Lane
Liverpool L9
