Workers at national housing charity Shelter will strike today over management plans to scrap their pay and grading structure and force them to sign new employment contracts.
Members of Unite – the Union voted to take action following what they say were months of fruitless negotiations. The union says that Shelter’s management are seeking to impose new conditions that would include an extension to employee’s working week amounting to three weeks extra a year without pay and the downgrading of posts throughout the charity’s advice and support services.
Unite National Secretary Doug Nicholls said: “Dedicated Shelter workers are legendary among homeless people across Scotland and the UK and those who are affecting by housing issues because they work selflessly for justice, and will always go the extra mile for those in need.
“But they can’t live on dedication alone; they need to bring home a wage based on their union’s employment agreements with Shelter, rather than have their contracts scrapped and replaced with inferior conditions.”
Unite Regional Officer Belinda Robertson added: "Our members are saddened that they have been forced into strike action. We are particularly concerned that some of our members feel that they are being intimidated into signing the new, inferior, terms and conditions.
“We recognise the funding difficulties Shelter - like many other voluntary sector organisations in Scotland - are currently facing but there is an issue of proportionality here. Shelter has spent at least half a million pounds on refurbishing its head office, employed six new change managers and ensured that senior management pay is in line with market rates.”
Shelter chief executive Adam Sampson responded: “Shelter staff have every right to strike, but we are very disappointed this action is being taken, and will be repeated next Monday.”
He added: "We have been negotiating with the union for six months, and have tried hard to come to an agreement with them. We have given the union our clear proposals, set out our financial situation and held two days of talks at ACAS. Despite this, the union will not agree with our plans and it has failed to suggest alternative proposals.
“We have considered all the options and this is the best for our staff and the long term future of the organisation. If we act now we lose no more than five staff, if we don't act we could be forced to make up to 200 of our staff redundant, which is something we all want to avoid.”
Shelter says it is making the changes due to increasing staff salaries of more than £1m a year, increasing competition for statutory and voluntary funding, and the worsening economic climate.
They say that the changes will mean up to five people from 850 employees being made redundant; around 40 staff being redeployed to a different job on a lower grade, but with their current salary protected for two years; an increase in working hours by 2.5 hours to 37.5 hours a week; and the ending of yearly incremental pay increases, while the annual cost of living increase will remain.
Sampson added: “The union must realise that Shelter exists to provide services to some of the most deprived and socially excluded people in society, and we must ensure we do this in the most appropriate and cost effective way possible.
“In Scotland we have undertaken a review of our services, which has been about improving working practices, improving access for clients across Scotland and making the best use of the money we raise to support our work. This will enable us to make it easier for clients to access our Housing Advisers regardless of where they live and increase our capacity to help 75 per cent more clients (up to 7,000 from the current 4,000), whilst reducing our costs. There will be re-grading of four posts, achieved through natural turnover.
"In Scotland, some of our services have been affected by this strike, which we are disappointed has gone ahead, but we are doing our best to limit the effect of this industrial action on those people who may need housing advice today. While some of our project offices are closed, our helpline number is still operating. We hope that we can resume business as usual as soon as possible in order to carry on the work that Shelter's staff do best, which is helping those with housing or homelessness problems."
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