Zarah ChoudharyStrike action is to escalate at Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospitals by the Rapid Response Team (RRT) responsible for controlling the spread of infections.
Over 40 members of the Unite trade union who work in the RRT are to take part in a second round of strike action.
RRT staff said they work long shifts in unpleasant conditions, cleaning and sterilising areas of the hospital to prevent the outbreak of infectious diseases.
According to Unite, the hospital trust has failed to provide adequate welfare facilities such as showers, changing areas, rest areas or toilets for staff to use before, during and after their shifts.
Workers will now strike from 17th to 28th March inclusive to highlight their plight and put pressure on the trust to improve their working conditions.
Sharon Graham, general secretary at Unite, said: “It is a disgrace that workers at the coalface of NHS care, ensuring hospitals are clean and controlling the spread of potentially life-threatening diseases, are treated with such utter disdain by hospital management.
“Our members have the full backing of Unite union in their fight for humane facilities.”
Tabusam Ahmed, regional officer at Unite added: “Our members are rightly furious about the situation they’ve found themselves in.
“These mainly BAME staff work all times of day and night in dangerous and unpleasant environments to keep hospitals clean and safe of the most infectious and contagious diseases.
“And yet they are told they aren’t valued and that they will remain on the lowest pay band. This is absolutely unacceptable.
“Guy’s and St Thomas’ need to think again and quickly come back to the negotiating table with an improved offer to avoid further disruption at the trust.”
A spokesperson for Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust 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 have robust contingency plans in place to mitigate the action and ensure services remain unaffected. We remain committed to working with our staff to resolve this dispute as soon as possible.”
