Hundreds of NHS workers including cleaners and porters are to be balloted for industrial action in a dispute over pay.
Members of Unite employed by Serco at London’s Barts Health NHS Trust will vote in the coming weeks on whether to launch a campaign of action.
The union is calling for the workers to be brought back in-house into NHS employment, saying they are paid up to 15% less than directly employed staff.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “The pandemic has shone a grim light on the injustice of a two-tier workforce.
“These workers, employed by Serco not the NHS, are exposed to the same risks as NHS-employed staff but they are paid significantly worse and treated disgracefully.
“It’s high time Barts Health NHS Trust brought these workers back in-house.”
Shane Degaris, deputy group chief executive at Barts Health NHS Trust, said: “We welcome assurances from Serco that there will be no disruption over the next 18 months as we consider future arrangements, which could include bringing some services back in-house.”
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