JUSTICE FOR MITIE MERSEYRAIL CLEANERS

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: march 2020 :: RMTnews 6 RMT held a protest last month in Liverpool as part of the campaign for Justice for Mitie Merseyrail Cleaners and to demand real living wage now for this crucial group of transport workers. Held outside the meeting of the Liverpool city region transport committee, activists were joined by Metro Mayor Steve Rotherham. RMT activists and supporters made the case against poverty pay outside the combined Passenger Transport Authority and Executive for Merseyside’s offices on behalf of a group of crucial staff who do some of the dirtiest jobs on the railways. Merseyrail outsourced station cleaning and maintenance a number of years ago, the work is currently undertaken by Mitie Facilities Management, part of the Mitie Group plc. Mitie Group paid nearly £49 million to its shareholders in dividends in the last five years. But it won’t pay its cleaners the Real Living Wage. Merseyrail latest profits were £16 million and just £70,000 would fund the Real Living Wage just 0.004 per cent of the profit level. A recent survey carried out by RMT of Mitie workers came back with 50 per cent of respondents saying they struggled to make ends meet. The union believes that Merseyrail should not be allowing its contractors to pay poverty wages and that these workers should be bought back in-house. RMT general secretary Mick Cash said that the campaign was gaining momentum with growing political and public support. “We are determined to fight for pay and workplace justice and it is time for Mitie and Merseyrail to end this disgraceful exploitation and take urgent action. “It is a scandal that the staff employed by outsourcing giant Mitie who clean stations for Merseyrail, doing some of the dirtiest work in the rail industry at all hours of the night and day, are struggling to make ends meet. “A company that can pay nearly £49 million to its shareholders in dividends in the last five years for doing nothing can afford a tiny fraction of that to pay its cleaners a decent wage for the work that they do. Merseyrail needs to take urgent action to facilitate payment of the Real Living Wage. “RMT welcomes the support of the Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram, who recognises that these cleaners should be paid at least the Real Living Wage, and we now call on Merseyrail and Mitie to sort this scandal out and end poverty pay,” he said. JUSTICE FOR MITIE MERSEYRAIL CLEANERS Mitie Group pays millions to shareholders but refuses to pay cleaners the Real Living Wage