Precarious employment, Health, U.K.

(August 2016) Staff at Cardiff Hospital working for the contractor ENGIE stopped proposed cuts to hours and pay enhancements following a 100% vote for strike action. The workers provide portering, catering, security, reception, housekeeping and cleaning staff to St. David’s Hospital could have lost hundreds of pounds a month under the changes, with redundancies also threatened. The company has withdrawn the proposals and also recognised Unison for collective bargaining. Read more at Unison.

(September 2016) The British Medical Association (BMA) has announced plans for four periods of industrial action in protest at the government's decision to impose a new contract on junior doctors. Junior doctors voted by 58% to 42% to reject the revised contract which they say fails to deal with problems relating to part-time work (affecting mainly women) and also working at weekends. The union has suspended action planned for September but action planned for 5 October will go ahead unless the government agrees to negotiate. Read more at BMA.

(December 2016) The public service unions GMB and Unison have welcomed a new deal that will see paramedics move up the National Health Service pay scale. The unions argue that the level of skills and responsibilities of the job justify the change. The paramedics are currently on a scale GBP 21000-28000 (EUR 24900-33200) and will move up to GBP 26000-35000 (EUR 30900-416000).

(March 2017) The latest government budget has been criticised by the TUC confederation and public service trade unions for offering nothing to public service workers who have seen their pay frozen or falling in real terms over the past 10 years. The PCS civil service union is organising a day of protest on 31 March and is calling for a 5% pay increase or £1200 a year (€1380) whichever is greater.

(April 2017) Health sector trade unions have attacked the latest pay increase proposal from the government appointed body that recommends pay awards - the NHS Pay Review Body. This marks the sixth year running that health sector pay rises have fallen behind inflation and unions are warning of the impact on recruitment and retention of healthworkers.

(May 2017) The UNISON public services union warns of a recruitment crisis in public services if public sector pay restraint is continued. UNISON quotes a new report from the independent Insitute of Fiscal Studies which say that if public sector pay continues to fall compared to pay in the private sector, the public sector will struggle to recruit and retain the workers it needs to deliver public services, and the quality of those services will therefore be at risk.

(July 2017) Seventeen health sector unions have come together to condemn the government's decision to impose the 1% pay gap for another year. Meanwhile, the firefighters' union has rejected a pay offer of 2% this year and 3% in 2018, saying that it fails to take account of the increasing workloads facing firefighters and workers at the Bank of England could go on strike for the first time in over 50 years unless the employer comes up with a better pay offer by the end of the month.

Striking cleaners, members of the Unite trade union, working at four London hospitals have taken their protests to the heart of the City of London. They are making their voices heard as their employer, the outsourcing company Serco, announces its latest profit figures. In one of the biggest ever strike actions by cleaners, the workers are highlighting excessive workloads and levels of pay so low that many have to take second jobs to make ends meet.

Public service workers across the UK have been involved in number of disputes over pay, jobs and safety. Waste workers in Birmingham and Doncaster are taking or planning action over pay and safety while cleaners at four hospitals in East London are continuting their campaign for a higher pay increase against outsourcing company Serco. Meanwhile in Sheffield members of the PCS civil service union are taking strike action in protest at the closure of a local Job Centre, part of a campaign against government proposals for closures across the country. Finally, janitors in schools across Glasgow

Public service unions have stepped up their campaign to end the public sector pay cap for all workers following the government's decision to offer higher pay rises to police, prison officers and firefighters. The unions used the annual meeting of the Trade Union Congress to make the case that all public service workers have seen their real pay decline significantly and deserve a higher pay rise. The FBU firefighters' union has rejected the 2% pay offer arguing that it comes with too many unacceptable conditions.

On 15 September 14 health sector trade unions submitted a joint pay claim to the government. Pay negotiations in the sector are normally carried out in a special pay review body that includes employer and trade union representatives. However, the 14 unions decided to bypass this mechanism and ask the government directly for extra funding in next year's budget for health workers' pay. The basic claim would be an increase in line with inflation plus £800 (910 EUR) as a step towards recouping the estimated 15% loss of purchasing power suffered by workers over several years of pay freezes and pay

A new survey published by public services union Unison exposes the pressure faced by home care workers and their precarious working conditions.Three-quarters (75%) of care workers said they had too little time to provide proper care because they are too rushed, often because employers pressure them to fit in an excessive number of visits.The report also highlights the job insecurity faced by home care workers with more than half (52%) on zero hours contracts, and more than three in five (63%) not getting paid for the time it takes to travel between care visits.

Public service unions are maintaining their pressure on the government to lift the 1% pay cap that continues to be applied to most public service workers, with the exception of police and firefighters. Civil service union PCS has organised a day of action on 31 October, while UNISON is running a Pay Up Now campaign. The GMB union organised a rally at Westminster to highlight the situation of public service workers to MPs and the RCN nurses' union handed in a petition to the Prime Minister on 20 October.

Health service unions are consulting their members over whether to accept a three-year pay offer which would mean workers at the top of their pay grade would get a 6.5% increase between April 2018 and April 2020, marking a break with the government's 1% pay cap in the public sector. All but the very highest paid staff would get 3% in April 2018, 1.7% and a 1.1% lump sum in April 2019, and 1.7% from April 2020. However, changes to the pay structure would mean significant increases of 15%-17% for the lowest paid. The government has also confirmed that it will fully fund the pay rises. Most