Security guards at two of London’s biggest museums will go on strike later this month complaining they are treated as “second-class employees” compared with other staff.
The security guards, who work at the Science Museum and the Natural History Museum are members of the United Voices of the World Union (UVW,) and will walk out on the weekend of October 25-27, the beginning of the autumn half-term break.
Security at the museum is outsourced to the contractor Wilson James who until this month paid security staff £11.95 per hour, which is 51p above the minimum wage. This month their pay was increased to £13.15 an hour but the guards are demanding £16 an hour, an extra week of annual leave and for sick pay to begin from day one rather than day four of an illness-related absence.
Geoffrey Davis, a UVW member and security supervisor at the Natural History Museum, said: “I’ve been with Wilson James for 23 years and this is the worst I’ve seen them treat us. I’ve found it hard to make ends meet as the cost of everything has gone up, such as broadband, gas, electricity, travel and food. The museums treat us as second-class employees when they give their directly employed staff pay rises and bonuses of £500. We think the museums need to take safety more seriously by treating us the same as their in-house staff, including paying a decent wage and providing sick pay from day one.”
The vote to strike was passed with 96% support and the union is now urging the museums to bring the security contracts in-house. Petros Elia, the general secretary for UVW, said: “The security guards have spoken loud and clear with an overwhelming vote to strike—they deserve wages that meet today’s standards, not outdated ones, and the incredibly important and thankless work they do. The outsourcing of these roles unfairly reduced the guards to second-class workers, cutting them off from the museum’s community, pay scales, and benefits. It’s long overdue for the museums to bring them in-house.”
A Wilson James spokesperson said: “We value our colleagues at the museums and recognise their vital contributions to protecting such treasured national institutions. We will do everything we can to maintain service and ensure the safety, comfort, and satisfaction of families and children excited to visit the museums during half term.”
The union will be holding a picket line outside the Science Museum at 10am on Saturday 26 October.
