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Cleaners at Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow take industrial action
26 March 2019, 17:01 | Updated: 26 March 2019, 17:10
Industrial action is being taken by cleaners at the Princess Alexandra Hospital (PAH) in Harlow.
Cleaners at the hospital are balloting over privatisation plans today.
UNISON has written to the Princess Alexandra Hospital Trust today to formally declare an industrial dispute, warning that outsourcing cleaning services will be bad for staff and patients.
Outsourcing cleaning services leads to higher infection rates and would create a two-tier workforce, with people paid different rates for doing the same job.
PAH cleaners have already received widespread public support in their fight to keep their jobs in the NHS.
An online petition has attracted over 1,800 signatures and domestics gathered more than 1,000 names during a two-hour stall on Harlow’s broad walk on Saturday (23 March).
Caroline Hennessy, UNISON's Eastern Regional Organiser told Heart:
Princess Alexandra Hospital cleaners have been left with no choice but to declare a dispute and step up their campaign in defence of their jobs and the service they provide.
Trust bosses have been keen to say how much they value their domestic staff but they want to kick them out of the NHS family - they can ask PAH’s outsourced security staff if they feel valued.
The public understands, even if the Trust doesn’t, that outsourcing is worse for patients and staff alike.
We again urge PAH to bin its privatisation plans. Our door is always open if the board wants to talk about how it can stop this ideologically driven outsourcing process and regain the trust of its staff."
