Eastbourne: Poverty Pay in the Public Sector !

EASTBOURNE BOROUGH COUNCIL: 42% of staff paid less than Living Wage

EAST SUSSEX COUNTY COUNCIL: 27% of staff paid less than Living Wage

EAST SUSSEX  HOSPITALS (DGH): 11% of staff paid less than Living Wage. 

As it is Living Wage week, we were keen to look at the situation for workers in Eastbourne. Eastbourne has many staff employed in the hospitality, leisure and retail sectors, all of which have traditionally been low-paid- although Morrisons and Lidl have recently joined the ranks of Living Wage employers. A number of other employers active in Eastbourne have also signed up to the Living Wage foundation's Living Wage accreditation, paying all staff over 18 £8.15 or more. You can read these here

Brighton and Hove City Council is accredited as a Living Wage employer, and Hastings Borough Council pays all of its directly employed staff above the Living Wage rate. So the public sector is setting a good example, yes ?...... Sadly not in Eastbourne !

East Sussex County Council employs a total of 16,200 people (many are part time and/or casual- the full time equivalent is 8,717 )   Of these, a staggering 4,373 were paid below the living wage rate- then £7.85-  in August, that's 27% of the council's workforce.

Eastbourne Borough Council employed 741, and 314 of these were paid less than the living wage. This equates to just over 42% of the council workforce.

Of those, we established that 27 were under 18 (the age at which the Living Wage Foundation expects their accredited employers to pay the Living Wage.)

Shockingly, the Borough Council still takes advantage of the lower rates within the national minimum wage to pay under 21's even less:  47 staff were paid less than the adult national minimum wage of £6,50 !

Perhaps the NHS would be better ?

Sussex Community NHS Trust, the main provider of NHS community health and care services across West Sussex, Brighton & Hove and High Weald, Lewes and Havens area of East Sussex has been paying the Living Wage since 2013. Sussex Partnership NHS Trust which provides services for those with mental health problems, learning disabilities or an addiction to drugs or alcohol have agreed to do the same at Board Level and are currently looking at the logistics around implementation.

As for the good old East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Eastbourne DGH- not such good news..... as we reported earlier, of a total workforce of 7314 across the trust (including the Conquest Hopsital in Hastings) 790 people were paid less than the Living Wage: around 11% of the workforce.

Trades Council secretary, Dave Brinson recalls: "I was in a meeting a couple of years ago, when an official of the Borough council berated me for suggesting that the town was a 'low wage' economy, This would seem to prove a point- and the Borough Council itself is at the forefront of perpetuating it !"

Source for EBC and ESCC information: FoI request by Dave Brinson, covering August pay period. Source for NHS information, FoI request by Unison. 

It's FAIR PAY Fortnight !

Working people in the UK are seeing their living standards squeezed harder and harder every year. The cost of energy, food and housing is soaring but wages aren’t keeping up.

6.1 MILLION people in working households are living in poverty. This means that (excluding pensioners) there are more working households in poverty than there are workless households !

Full time workers have lost on average over £4,000 in wages since 2009 and while jobs may be returning to the economy, they’re increasingly low paid, low hours and low security.

Eastbourne has many workers who are employed in low-wage and zero-hours contracts. Eastbourne definitely needs a pay rise !
 

Eastbourne has many workers employed in the social care sector.  According to Unison, there are 220,000 care workers paid less than the minimum wage (usually through employer fiddles that falsely calculate 'working' hours)  Find out more about their campaign, and sign the petition here.

Watch the TUC's animation highlighting the every day challenges faced by millions of people hit by the cost of living crisis below.

 

 

UPDATE: Support package unveiled, but what about the Pier Workers ?

Pic by Sophie Lewis

Not a phrase that a lot of trade unionists would use often, but it was a good thing that David Cameron was in Eastbourne today.  The PM and chancellor visited the scene of the Pier fire, spoke to those involved in the rescue, and announced that up to £2 million, apparently from the coastal communities fund, would be made available to support the local economy. At face value- very good, but, as always, the devil will be in the detail.

Cynics point out that Eastbourne is a key marginal seat, and the election is only months away. This is undoubtedly true, but any government of any political hue should be taking this disaster for Eastbourne's community seriously. While Cameron managed to get a swift plug for the Tory candidate in on his social media within hours of the visit, the main thrust appears to be focused on being supportive. His political opponent, Stephen Lloyd, our Lib Dem MP has also seemed to be extremely busy on this issue.  Commendable, and indeed, no less than our community should expect of an elected representative, again, whatever their politics.

First of all, and this seems to have been made clear today, the money should not be for the restoration of the pier itself. This was a privately owned building, and should have paid for adequate insurance.  If there are additional costs around the accuracy and quality of a rebuild, there are grants available from sources such as English Heritage that would be more appropriate.

The small, usually sole traders with concessions on the Pier have been specifically mentioned as being targeted from this fund, and we should support that. These people are  not "big business"- they are very much part of the working people's movement, and many face ruin.  Already suggestions of stalls at Airbourne and pop-up shops in empty units have been mentioned, and this is quite right.

But- and this is the big but- what about the people who worked on the Pier- in the arcade, in the bars, in Atlantis, on the maintenance and management of the Pier ?  Support for them seems an unanswered question at the moment.

We know that many of these staff were on relatively low wages, and there were no union recognition agreements in place (although we believe that there were individual union members working on the Pier.) They have lost their livelihood too.

As trade unionists, we should be demanding, first of all, that the employers (and their insurers) meet their obligations, both contractual and moral. If there are to be job losses, there should be a consultation with the staff and representatives, plus contractual notice. Staff on temporary contracts will not have accrued the right to redundancy money, but should still be paid their notice period.  We don't know how many, if any, staff were on the notorious zero-hours contracts, but if this is the case, they should be given a deal based on the hours they would have expected to work, and the employers should be publicly shamed if this is not offered. Those staff who are individual members of a Union should contact them right away for advice and support.

Even with their contractual rights however, many of the workers will face hardship. Already on fairly low wages, some may face as little as a week's notice, and then the task of seeking alternative employment at this late stage in the season, where most high-season vacancies will have been filled.  The Chamber of Commerce has been heavily involved in the talks in the past few days- they should strongly urge their members to offer any vacancies to staff displaced by the fire.

And, of course, the money to support "the local economy". This must include support to alleviate the hardship of ordinary working people who gave their services to the Pier, and find themselves facing uncertainty through no fault of their own.  The fund must be used to help them too.

We are informed that the MP and the task group that has come together, are looking very seriously into the plight of the Pier workers, and that an announcement is due very soon. To help them, we provide this useful graphic (we have started from 4.00pm yesterday, when it became clear that the Pier would be closed for business for some time.)  We will take it down when Pier staff get the fair deal they so rightly deserve.

 

Are you a member of Pier staff ?  Do you want advice or support about your contractual rights ?  Please let us know via e-mail here.

Trades Council Meeting: July 9th

The next meeting of Eastbourne Trades Council will be on Tuesday 9th July, 7.30pm at the Unite Eastbourne Centre (T&GWU), Grand Parade, Eastbourne.

Equal Pay- Fair Pay: Our History and the Future

Rather than a guest speaker "in the flesh" this meeting, we will be showing a 25 minute film produced by the TUC entitled Scenes from a Turbulent History- a documentary on equal pay since the 1880s. You may well have seen the movie Made in Dagenham- but this film and a super accompanying resource, uses real testimony from the working people who were actually there and brought about change.   The film is part of a resource pack on equal pay- and there will be an opportunity for the Trades Council to discuss if we want to make this resource available to others in Eastbourne.

There will also be an agenda item on the Living Wage Campaign, and an opportunity to decide whether, and how, the Eastbourne Trades Council could get involved.

All local trade union members, including retired trade unionists, are welcome to attend the meeting.

THE AGENDA WILL BE:

1. Introductions and apologies for absence
2. Approval of new affiliations.
3. Minutes of previous meeting and matters arising

4. Treasurer's Report- Gordon Dyer

5. Scenes From a Turbulent History- film showing
6. Living Wage Campaign- action in Eastbourne ?

7. Any other Campaigns: Colleagues invited to provide information on their Unions’ local and national campaigns, and any support that the Trades Council could give.
8. Trades Council Library

9. Any other business.

 

Apologies, or requests for agendas etc. in advance to the Secretary

Get involved- latest campaigns in the South East

Latest campaign information and resources from the South East Region of the TUC

European TUC Day of Action & Solidarity Wednesday 14 November  "For Jobs & Solidarity in Europe. No to Austerity" 

Wednesday 14 November including strikes, demonstrations, rallies and other actions

• Oxford trades council is staging a lunchtime protest in the Cornmarket 12 noon to 1pm. Contact them here.
•  Coalition of Resistance demonstration and rally "Europe against austerity" 5pm Smith Square London
• ETUC list of actions taking place across Europe
• ETUC newsletter number 70

Regional Trades Council actions

• Kings Lynn trades council final Women for Change lecture Saturday 17 November 11.30am Kings Lynn with Cristel Amiss from the Crossroads Women's Centre in Camden. Contact them here. 
• Bromley trades council AGM Thursday 22 November 6pm HG Wells Centre, St Marks Road, contact Paul Rooney

Union actions:

• Unite defend the Agricultural Wages Board, lobby and rally now Monday 12 November Old Palace Yard 12.30pm 
• Unite lobby against attack on National Terms and Conditions, Bromley Council Monday 12 November 6pm at the Civic Buildings. Contact for details here.  
• RMT Charles Watkins Memorial Lecture Tuesday 27 November 7pm London with Professor Roger Seifert
• RMT is seeking as large a turnout as possible at its demonstration on Sunday 18 November to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Kings Cross fire and to highlight the continued need for a full staffed and safe tube network. 11am outside Kings Cross station.
• PCS forum to expand on the alternatives to the austerity agenda 7pm London Wednesday 28 November with Mark Serwotka PCS, Dexter Whitfield author, Nick Wrack TUSC  Contact here for more information.  

Other Events and Actions:

• Campaign for State Education conference "Picking up the pieces" Saturday 17 November London.
• Solace Women's Aid "Rock against violence" fundraising event Tuesday 20 November 7pm Islington
• Andrew Wiard photographic exhibition in Congress House to Friday 16 November
• Latin America 2012 conference "Making a better world possible" Saturday 1 December 9.30am London  
• NHS Ipetition  in defence of Lewisham A&E and Maternity Services.
• Institute of Employment Rights one day conference "Equality and Discrimination" Wednesday 5 December 9.30am London with Sally Brett TUC and many others.
• War on Want greetings cards and gifts available here
• Cuba Solidarity Campaign greetings cards featuring the paintings of Miami Five prisoner Antonio Guerrero, proceeds to the Free the Miami Five Campaign. 
• East London Federation of Suffragettes public meeting "Learning from great campaigners 100 years on" hosted by Tower Hamlets Labour Party and the East London Fawcett Society supported by Unison Wednesday 14 November 7pm with Professor Mary Davis historian and Tower Hamlets Councillor Rachael Saunders
• National Assembly of Women conference "Women, power and politics. Sisters fight back" Saturday 17 November Unison Centre London. Speakers include Sarah Veale TUC, Gloria Mills Unison, Megan Dobney SERTUC, Councillor Barbara White.

Resources and Information:

• TUC Labour Market Report number 30 October
• Economics: the plain truth A series of briefings for Reps and Activists. No.1: Government Debt
• SERTUC pay seminar 3 November - the powerpoint presentations from Heather Wakefield (Unison) and Enrico Tortolano (PCS)
• PCS briefing on the latest attack on civil service terms and conditions
• Low earners have suffered the weakest earnings growth over the last 26 years, with link to Office for National Statistics figures
• Unions in the community new website with dedicated area for trades councils

Ending the Low Pay Culture- a SERTUC Seminar: London, 3rd November

South East region TUC is hosting a morning seminar in the wake of the TUC's mass demo for 'A Future that Works' on October 20^th.

Looking at ending the low pay culture, the seminar will address: 

• Trends in workers' pay since 1975,
• Increasing workers' pay- negotiating success
• How the government's proposals for regional/local pay are not evidence based
• How workers' wages are a critical pillar of the trade unions' alternative economic strategy.

Chaired by Tony Lennon, SERTUC vice president, guest speakers will include Duncan Weldon, TUC senior policy officer, Helen Kersley of the New Economics Foundation, Heather Wakefield, head of local government for Unison and Enrico Tortolano, national research officer for PCS.

The seminar is FREE and directed towards reps, activists and union officers.

Date: Saturday 3 November

Time: 10am - 1pm (followed by lunch)

Venue: Congress House, Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3LS

Cost: Free to attend but registration is essential

MEET THE NEW TUC GENERAL SECRETARY

There is also an opportunity to hear Frances O’Grady TUC general secretary designate address the  SERTUC Regional Council meeting. This will be just one week after the March for a Future that Works.

All trade union members from the South East may attend as observers to the meeting to hear Frances, although advance registration is essential. Congress House 10am on Saturday 27 October. Contact Darren Lewis at SERTUC-  dlewis@tuc.org.uk

Local Pay- bad for Eastbourne

We all want to see fair pay for the nurses, teachers and others who work hard to deliver good public services. But on top of pay freezes, the government now wants to change the way pay is set in the public sector.

Instead of a fair, transparent national system, they want local or regional pay that would mean different rates for people doing exactly the same jobs, just because of where they live.

Here are just five reasons why it doesn’t add up:

• It’s unfair:  Regional pay could mean two nurses or teachers with the same skills and experience being paid differently in two different places – even though they’re doing the same job. People should be paid based on their skills and the work they do, not where they live. Low pay could make it harder for poorer regions to attract and keep the skilled public sector workers they need.
• It’s bad for the economy:  Public sector workers are already feeling the pinch from pay freezes, the VAT rise and inflation. Regional pay would mean holding back pay for even longer in the parts of the country that are struggling the most.  Holding back public sector pay will take money out of public sector workers’ pockets that they would otherwise spend in local shops and businesses.  
• It isn’t backed up by evidence: The government has argued that public sector pay stops the private sector growing. In fact, there’s no evidence to support this. There is an average of five  people chasing every job vacancy, and up to 30 unemployed people per vacancy in some areas. It’s the lack of demand in the economy, not the wages of nurses and teachers that is causing the problem.
• It isn’t what the private sector does: Most big private sector employers recognise that a national system is the fairest and most efficient way to set pay. In fact, companies like Waterstones, Greggs,  Marks and Spencer, BT and Halfords all take the same sort of approach as the public sector: a national pay system with limited additions for London and the south east of England.
• It’s unpopular: According to a recent opinion poll only 28 per cent of voters believe the idea of extending pay freezes for public sector workers outside of the south east and London would be fair. As few as 17 per cent believe that real term pay cuts for public sector workers would help low pay regional economies. It’s time that coalition MPs listened to their constituents, heard their concerns and put a stop to these damaging and divisive plans.

It isn’t just about a North-South Divide !   Eastbourne has long been a “low wage” economy within the South East.  The Education Secretary’s speculation about schools introducing “local market-facing pay” could even lead to Eastbourne teachers being paid less than their colleagues in Brighton- regardless of where they live !

   

For more information, go to www.tuc.org.uk/payfair for information and materials, plus tips and links to help you contact your MP or  local newspaper.

Local Bargaining in the Public Sector- why Eastbourne should worry !

The TUC has produced a discussion paper in response to the Chancellor's announcements, and the Wolf report, on local pay in public services. This should be a major concern to all trade unionists, especially in Eastbourne's relatively "low wage" (for the region) economy !

The Chancellor has asked the public sector pay review bodies to look at how public sector pay can be made “more responsive to local labour markets. It is clear that the Government thinks that public sector pay is too high in some part of the country and it is argued that:

“Public and private sector organisations compete for employees in different markets across the UK. However, while private sector pay is set in accordance with local labour markets, public sector pay is usually set on a national basis. As a result, in many areas, public sector pay does not reflect local labour market conditions.
Differences between public and private sector pay can adversely affect private sector businesses which have to compete with higher public sector wages. It also leads to unfair variations in public sector service quality and limits the number of jobs that the public sector can support.”

The TUC counters that public sector pay supports local economies. The Government's view takes no account of the part that public sector wages play in supporting the less well-off regions and nations of the UK. For example, the North East has both the lowest wages and the highest unemployment in England. It would simply not be credible to argue that the public sector was “crowding-out” private sector jobs in the poorest regions and nations.

Rather, reducing public sector wages in struggling areas would be certain to lead to fewer jobs, as a further fall in consumer spending would drive more private sector enterprises out of business. The failure of these enterprises would then cause f ripple effects. Economists estimate that this doubles the impact of any public sector wage cut.

According to the ONS Labour Force Survey, average public sector pay varies by 10.4 per cent between the regions and nations of the UK . It is most likely that public sector pay would fall furthest in the poorest parts of the UK.

The TUC estimates the regional effect of cutting public sector pay by just one per cent for the 908,000 public employees in the South East Region would have the effect of cutting £231 Million from the local economy- with devastating knock-on effect across both public and private sector workers.

In summary — the main arguments against "local pay" in public services:

• Bad for local economies



• Long-winded and inefficient



• Bad for equalities — particularly affects women.



• Will worsen public services in poorer areas



• Will not improve public services in well—off areas