SSP LAUNCHES JOB CULL

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: september 2020 :: RMTnews 15 R MT has demanded that jobs at rail catering company Select Service Partner (SSP) - owners of Upper Crust, Rail Gourmet, Burger King rail outlets and a range of other well-known brands – should be taken in- house as it presses ahead with redundancies of station outlet staff under the guise of the COVID-19 pandemic.  The company has chosen to not open the overwhelming majority of outlets and are keeping units closed based on the unsubstantiated view that there is little or no demand for them to open. The decision to keep the units closed was taken prior to any increase in passenger numbers or easing of restrictions. The company has indicated they may open some units up in time but have refused to guarantee offering redundant staff their jobs back, a position that RMT finds outrageous. RMT has put forward counter proposals to the company and not even received the courtesy of a response. This decision has been taken in spite of the fact that the company is awash with money after soaking up taxpayer furlough cash. RMT says the scandal yet again exposes the brutal, profit- driven nature of outsourcing on the railway and reinforces the call for work to be brought in-house.   RMT research shows that in 2018 and 2019, SSP Group made a total profit of £416 million, profit from UK operations was £191 million, and it paid out a total of £346 millions in dividends to shareholders. The numbers show that the company was making and stockpiling huge money pre- covid but has now chosen to throw its workers under the bus rather than providing job security at a time of national crisis, highlighting again the scandal of privatisation on the railways. RMT has also pointed out that SSP furloughed a large proportion of its staff, drawing funds from the joint HM Treasury and Bank of England Covid Corporate Financing Facility and got rent payment holiday for outlets at Network Rail managed stations – soaking up substantial public funds and benefits and yet still ploughing ahead with redundancies to keep company shareholders happy. RMT senior assistant General Secretary Mick Lynch said that the union was appalled that SSP was refusing to even try and re-open food outlets and protect jobs despite many other companies attempting to do so.  “The company intends to get rid of the workers who have made good profits for the company over the years through their labour rather than standing by them through more difficult times. This is in spite of the fact that SSP received huge sums in taxpayer support and benefits during the pandemic “The latest developments also reinforce RMT’s demand that train operating companies who outsource on train catering to SSP owned Rail Gourmet immediately bring these workers in house to protect them from the SSP meltdown,” he said. Major UK rail caterer presses ahead with redundancies after soaking up taxpayer cash SSP Group finance table SSP Group PLC Year Total revenue Underlying profit Revenue from UK operations UK profit Dividends 2019 2,794,600,000 221,100,000 840,500,000 101,800,000 200,800,000 2018 2,564,900,000 195,200,000 798,100,000 89,500,000 145,800,000 Total 5,359,500,000 416,300,000 1,638,600,000 191,300,000 346,600,000 SSP LAUNCHES JOB CULL