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Campaign for fair pay and a living wage

Issue one July 2010 - Campaign for fair pay and a living wage

Following members meetings across the three filestores sites, the consensus was that whilst the fringe improvements to annual leave for new starters, first Aid allowance and the harmonising of the morning and afternoon break times were welcomed (with some reservations, particularly the annual leave) it was felt the financial increase of 1% was derisory given the recent financial statement from Paul Pindar about how well Capita are doing on the Integrated Services arm of its operations as well as generally across the Capita group operations.

PCS have written formally to the employer stating that the membership are far from happy with what has been offered this pay round.

It is also disappointing to members (and staff) that the 2009 pay agreement has not been honoured in as much as there has been no movement to higher pay points from the £5.90 - £6.11 and from £6.11 - £6.42.

Staff have been told across the sites that their pay is "frozen" until the conclusion of this year’s negotiations with progression and any rises being backdated to July 1st. This is not what was agreed and it is unacceptable that there should be any staff still on £5.90 at this moment in time.

The employer has already responded with an invite to further talks and a date has still to be finalised; however for there to be an agreement, PCS is clear that a significant improvement in the offer from the employer is needed.

The campaign

We are currently seeking to enlist the support of other union branches in the North-West, North-East and nationally to publicise, by all means at our disposal, the low rates of pay currently in place and on offer from Capita for its employees on the filestores contracts, and indeed this has already started.

As this campaign progresses the members will be informed of developments. This has already resulted in new and returning members signing up to join the union and a new rep coming forward at Heywood along with interest being expressed for the vacancy of Equality Officer.

Delegates from the branch have been invited to the reception at the TUC conference in early September to meet and talk with other union general secretaries about the pay issues facing members at the filestores. Every member can and does make a difference, so get involved!

Capita Can Afford Fair Pay!

The cost of utilities and groceries continues to rise by around 5% and we are offered 1%. This can’t be fair, can it? Our union is seeking fair pay for all on this contract and a move towards an end to poverty pay.
 
The European Union decency threshold is £15,500 per year. The EU says anyone earning less than this is not earning a living wage. How much do you earn a year? Our pay campaign is seeking to convince our employer that low pay is in nobody’s long-term interests. Our employer makes millions of pounds of profit each year. It makes millions of pounds for its shareholders each year. They can afford to end low pay in the filestores – the question is do they want to?

Our campaign for Fair pay can win – but it needs every worker to play their part and do their bit. If you are not a member of PCS, join today. If you are a member come and get in touch and ask what you can do to help. Our demand for pay justice is a serious one – we are in it for the long haul. However we only win if you actively support the forthcoming campaign.
 
More details on the campaign will follow. There is a lot to do – so get involved today.

Capita GEC