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WORKERS at a health and public services privateer held a protest in Liverpool today against the firm’s plans to withhold their wages for a week.
ISS is a multi-billion pound corporation which has gobbled up control over jobs across the public sector including hospital cleaners, porters, catering and security staff.
The company’s workforce numbers 40,000, with most paid by the hour.
Recently the firm decided to unilaterally change the way it pays employees — staff will work for three weeks but be paid for only two when the new payment cycle is introduced on May 9.
ISS also insultingly offered to “lend” staff their unpaid week’s wages, on condition that the money is repaid within eight weeks. The unpaid wages will be given to employees only if they leave the company.
General unions Unite and GMB are opposing the changes, which also affect security staff at Barclays Bank in Canary Wharf and at global financier Goldman Sachs.
Employees — many of them already struggling to exist on the statutory minimum wage — held a two-hour rally outside the Royal Liverpool Hospital in Merseyside to express their anger.
Unite national officer for health Colenzo Jarrett-Thorpe said: “Without any proper consultation ISS is withholding its workers’ pay and plunging many who live from hand to mouth into genuine hardship.
“And in an act of astonishing nerve the company which is worth billions has offered to loan workers their own money to cover the shortfall. This is yet another example of bandit capitalism by the outsourcing industry.
“Unite is consulting its members on the next steps and we are determined to fight this decision.”
Unions will be meeting the company next week to demand that ISS pays workers what they are owed, he added.
GMB organiser Michael Evans said: “These punishing pay changes will see some of the lowest paid staff struggling to make ends meet.
“For people living hand to mouth this will mean the difference between getting by and not being able to put food on the table.
“GMB will not stand by and let our members face this kind of hardship.”
