Royal Berkshire Hospital security guards set for week-long walkout over pay
Berkshire UK Dec 7 2020
Security guards at the Royal Berkshire Hospital are set to stage a walkout amid pushes for better pay.
A group of 20 security guards will engage in a week-long strike at the hospital in Reading over the “failure” of their employer to make “a decent pay offer”.
The guards are pushing for a wage of £12 an hour for security officers and £13.00 an hour for security supervisors. They currently make £8.89 per hour for security officers (£19,500 annually) and £9.89 per hour for supervisors (£21,600 annually).
The guards work at the hospital as contract workers for Kingdom Services Group Ltd.
Unite regional officer Jesika Parmar said: “What we have here is a ‘David and Goliath’ struggle between our members seeking a pay increase against a management which is part of a global organisation with a £100 million turnover.
“Our lowly-paid members provide security 24/7 at the Royal Berkshire Hospital which is on the Covid-19 frontline.
“However, the management have refused to engage in meaningful talks over the 2020 pay award and other issues, such as harmonisation of sick pay, and enhanced pay for working nights, weekends and overtime.”
Parmar added: “Our members are very reluctant to take industrial action during a national crisis, but strongly feel, as reinforced by the 100 per cent vote in favour of strike action, that the bosses are using coronavirus as an excuse to drive down pay and employment conditions which is totally unacceptable.
“We believe that strike action would cause severe reputational damage to the company. However, Unite’s door remains open for constructive talks with the company to resolve this dispute.”
The strike will take place from 7am on Monday, December 14, to 7pm on Friday, December 18.
The union’s claim about Kingdom’s turnover comes from the About Us section on its website, which states: “Kingdom is one of the largest, independent and privately owned companies specialising in security solutions, facilities management, environmental protection and recruitment within the UK, Ireland and South Asia.
“We operate on a £100million+ turnover, and we’ve worked hard to get here.”
BerkshireLive has approached Kingdom, which is based in Basingstoke, for comment.
A spokesperson for the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust which runs the hospital said: “We are aware of the situation and are working with Kingdom to ensure the safety of our patients, staff, visitors and the hospital site if any industrial action goes ahead.”
