Author Archives: elftworkerssolidarity

Following a pressure from Labour MPs and the Safe and Equal campaign last winter, we were told that “the Department of Health and Social Care has approved the payment of occupational sick pay for periods of self-isolation for all workers at Test Centres. This commitment has also been included in the tender specifications for theContinue reading “Test Centre workers still need isolation pay!”

Over fifteen thousand (15,263) working-aged people have died of Covid-19. Employers have registered just 387 as work-related deaths. That is just one example of the extraordinary efforts the boss class has made to deny and minimise workplace transmission.  In fact, at most of the high points in the pandemic indoor, social mixing has mostly beenContinue reading “Workers’ control for safety at work”

Over the last year we have won many victories and most recently confirmation that the Covid Test centres (run by Serco, G4S and others) will pay full sick pay and isolation pay for their workers after our campaign.  But we know that millions of workers get only the Statutory Sick Pay of £96 rather thanContinue reading “Full Pay when Sick – May Day week of action”

Victory for test centre workers! For the past few months Safe and Equal has been working with Labour MPs to demand full sick and isolation pay for all frontline Test Centre workers. Yesterday, we received a letter from Sodexo confirming that Test Centre workers will now be entitled to full isolation pay and that thisContinue reading “Victory for Test Centre workers!”

Serco CEO Rupert Soames responds to a letter from Bell Ribeiro-Addy and the Safe and Equal campaign confirming Test Centre workers only get SSP if they need to isolate. Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP House of Commons London, SW1A 0AABy email: bell.ribeiroaddy.mp@parliament.uk Your Ref: BRA/AD/008Dear Ms Ribeiro-Addy, Thank you for your letter regarding the contractual arrangements forContinue reading “Serco confirm Test centre workers are on “super-spreader contracts””

Despite a budget of £37 billion over two years “NHS” Test and Trace is having a negligible effect on reducing infections. The huge testing and contact tracing infrastructure alone is having very little effect because only about one in five are fully isolating when they have symptoms. The current Serco-G4S-Deloitte mess is performing very poorly.Continue reading “Transform Test and Trace into an isolation service!”

On Wednesday 10th March the Parliamentary Accounts Committee published a damning report on “NHS” Test and Trace, finding no evidence that it had helped reduce rates of Coronavirus infection despite the “unimaginable” cost to the taxpayer of £37 billion. In the same week an investigation by the Safe and Equal campaign found widespread use ofContinue reading “Is NHST&T actually helping to spread the virus?”

Test and Trace may be a net contributor to virus transmission due to super-spreader employment practices – Test and Trace workers tell campaign they cannot afford to isolate if they get suspected Coronavirus infection  – Lack of proper sick pay and job security for G4S workers turns Test Centres into potential Corona hotspots – ParliamentaryContinue reading “Press release: Test Centre workers cannot afford to isolate”

Safe and Equal have received confirmation that frontline workers operating NHS Test and Trace are employed on zero hours contracts and have no rights to company sick pay. We are working with Labour MPs to investigate further. This is the correspondence between Emily Thornberry MP and G4S. G4S 5th Floor,  Southside,  105 Victoria Street,  London, Continue reading “G4S Test Centre workers on “super spreader contracts””

The new mutations of the virus make the case for full sick and isolation pay ever more urgent. Even the Tories are openly discussing the need to support low paid workers who need to isolate. Official figures suggest that around 80% of people are avoiding getting tested if they get symptoms and a similar numberContinue reading “Call for united workers’ campaign for full sick and isolation pay”