Zarah ChoudharyNearly 160 essential housing and estate services workers in the London Borough of Southwark are set to strike later this month over the council’s approach to annual leave.
Unite members, who perform repairs and maintenance on council-owned housing stock and the council’s own properties get up to 12 fewer days annual leave than management grades in administrative positions at the council and the lowest paid technicians get two fewer days than higher paid colleagues in the same department.
Despite negotiations by Unite, the council has refused to compromise or offer additional leave to housing workers to bring them up to the same level.
Workers will now head to the picket line to voice their anger from 28th-30th January.
Sharon Graham, general secretary at Unite, said: “It is a disgrace that a chief executive of a council, on hundreds of thousands of pounds a year to sit behind a desk, gets more annual leave than our hard-working members on the frontline of council services.
“Our members repair and maintain homes to ensure they are fit for habitation and yet are being told they can’t have the same number of days leave as the number crunchers in head office.
“That is just plain wrong and our members are prepared to take strike action to show their anger at such policies. They will have the full backing of their union in this dispute.”
Workers in the housing and estates team currently start on 27 days of leave a year.
Those in senior, executive roles at the council head office get an additional nine days but this can rise to an additional 12 days with long service.
This is in addition to the substantially higher pay.
Currently, the chief executive of Southwark Council (Althea Loderick) earns £230,368 with the council contributing nearly £50,000 in pension contributions according to Unite.
By contrast, this is eight times the salary of workers within the housing and estates team.
Mary Summers, regional officer at Unite added: “Our members perform a vital role for the council in all weathers, making sure Southwark residents have homes in good condition.
“Yet they are being told they don’t deserve the same amount of annual leave as the fat cats in head office. We won’t stand for such unfair policies.
“All workers deserve paid time off to rest, recuperate and spend time with friends and family.
“Our members will be making their voices heard on the picket line in Southwark and have the full support of Unite in their fight for equality.”
During the strike, maintenance and repair work across Southwark’s estate will not take place or it will be severely delayed.
A Southwark Council spokesperson responded: “The council highly values the contribution of our hard-working housing teams.
“Our existing annual leave framework was negotiated and agreed with trade unions and we are currently working closely with trade unions to review our approach.
“We will continue to provide an emergency repairs service to our housing tenants during the industrial action.”
