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Ministry of Justice cleaners walk out after colleague's death as nation mourns Covid-19 victims

WORKERS forced to clean empty offices at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) downed tools today following the death of a colleague from suspected Covid-19.

The walkout coincided with International Workers’ Memorial Day, as millions across the country took part in a minute’s silence to honour key workers who have died from the virus.

The cleaners, who work at the government building in central London, claim they are being forced to go in because they cannot survive on statutory sick pay (SSP) if they take time off.

They also claim that their employer, outsourcing firm OCS group, has not provided them with proper protective wear. 

It follows the death of a worker last week, believed to be from Covid-19. London-based union United Voices of the World (UVW) said he was Emmanuel from Guinea Bissau, one of its members.

Despite being severely ill for five days, Emmanuel still went to work and died shortly after leaving the office, union rep Petros Elia said.

Mr Elia claimed that Emmanuel had only attended work because he could not afford to take time off.

“Emmanuel, like millions of other workers, was only entitled to SSP, which provides no money for the first three days of illness, then only around £19 a day thereafter, which meant he couldn’t afford to take time off work to seek medical treatment and to rest and recover,” he said.

“Every worker deserves full sick pay from day one of illness,” he added. “It is literally a matter of life and death, and not just when there’s a pandemic.”

The cleaners have demanded that they are provided with full sick pay, to ensure workers are able to take leave should they feel ill, and for the majority of the workforce to be furloughed.

Staff are currently working full shifts, Monday to Friday, travelling during rush hour and coming into close contact with staff without adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), the union said.

One of the cleaners who walked out yesterday, Fatima Djalo, said: “The Ministry of Justice did not close the building, and we are stuck in here catching the virus. Everybody else is at home.”

She said that she and her colleagues lack adequate PPE including masks, which are “the most important thing at the moment: we don’t have them.”

Mr Elia said the MoJ should also be “held accountable” as workers have been fighting to receive occupational sick pay from the government department and OCS for years.

The outsourcing firm confirmed to the Morning Star that one of its employees had died at home but did not know the details of his cause of death.

It said that PPE had been issued in full to staff at the site, adding that masks were “not required to be used, in line with current Public Health England guidelines.”

After today’s minute’s silence, union leaders called for all key workers to be provided with adequate PPE to ensure that more people don’t fall victim to the virus .

Unison leader Dave Prentis said it was “incredibly moving” to see the nation fall silent, with scenes of NHS staff standing outside hospitals to pay their respects.

But he added that it was “sadly inevitable that more key workers will fall victim to the virus” and demanded that the government provide “plentiful and frequent supplies of protective equipment to all workplaces that need it.”

More than 100 NHS staff as well as transport, postal and prison workers have lost their lives to Covid-19.

Royal College of Nursing general secretary Donna Kinnair said: “We thought it was important to pay tribute publicly to those who have lost their lives to the virus, and I am proud that so many took the time to do so this morning.”
 
But she also stressed that an “even greater task” still remains: to “stop more joining the tragic number of those who have died.”

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) said all deaths of key workers as a result of Covid-19 should be automatically recognised as work-related, ensuring their families receive compensation.

FBU general secretary Matt Wrack said: “There is, sadly, a real chance that firefighters will die, and that’s why we are calling on the government to urgently instruct all fire & rescue services to treat any death from Covid-19 as being caused by their work, making families automatically eligible for a payment under the firefighters’ compensation scheme.”

He added that those who have died from the virus after being forced into non-essential work should also be included in the scheme.

International Workers’ Memorial Day is an annual event to remember those who have died at work or from work-related illnesses.

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