A Bristol care home provider has claimed it has been subjected to a 'campaign of misinformation' as its staff vote on whether or not to strike in a dispute over new contracts and conditions.
Staff at the St Monica Trust - which runs five retirement villages and care homes in Bristol - have already indicated they would be prepared to take industrial action about the Trust's new restructure, with care workers and nurses who are members of the healthcare workers' union Unison currently being balloted on strike action.
Representatives of Unison say the Trust’s proposals would see sick pay and enhancements to pay for working evenings and weekends ‘drastically cut’, leaving some front-line care workers ‘up to £300 poorer each month’.
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They also branded the changes to contracts and terms and conditions as ‘fire and re-hire’, claiming that staff had been told if they didn’t agree to the changes they would be dismissed and rehired on new, inferior contracts.
Unison says proposed changes to shift times will also be devastating to some staff with caring responsibilities. A Unison spokesperson said: “The cuts have caused much concern amongst the care staff, especially with the spiralling cost of living and carers already worried about how they are going to make ends meet."
But the Chief Executive of the Trust has issued a statement saying its intention is not to “fire and rehire”, but to reach an agreement with its care home staff on the "best way forward." David Williams said in a statement, published on the Trust's website yesterday (May 18): "In recent weeks, the St Monica Trust has been subjected to a campaign of misinformation regarding the proposed restructure of our care homes.
"The Trust is a local charity and the world we are now operating in is very different to the one of two years ago. The pandemic continues to have a significant impact on the UK’s health and social care sector, as does the nationwide social care recruitment crisis.
"The proposals that are currently under consideration aim to deliver consistency in the ways of working across all of the Trust’s care homes, improve recruitment and attract new workers into the social care sector. This will also help fulfil our ongoing commitment for the St Monica Trust to be a real living wage employer, while offering a package of enhancements that exceed the industry standards for the health and social care sector.
"We believe this is necessary to ready ourselves for the many challenges that lie ahead for the social care sector as a whole, as well as enhancing the experience of living in our care homes for our residents and their loved-ones."
Mr Williams says that it is "disappointing" the trade union has decided to escalate the situation. He continued: "Whilst we acknowledge that a trade union is within their rights to canvas for strike action, it is disappointing they have chosen to escalate the situation at this point in the consultation process.
"Through their news release, the trade union references a framework which the Trust is legally-bound to follow to ensure that any proposed changes are agreed in a fair and transparent way. To be clear, our intention is not to “fire and rehire”, but to reach agreement with our care home colleagues on the best way forward.
"Consultations between the Trust and our care home colleagues regarding the proposed changes are ongoing and, from listening to our teams, we have amended the initial proposal to include a form of pay protection. To date, approximately two thirds of respondents have accepted the proposed changes, with the remainder seeking further clarification, which we hope will address any remaining concerns.
"We would like to reassure our care home colleagues that they are all valued, and that the Trust is committed to working together with all parties involved, to jointly agree the most appropriate way forward."
UNISON's response
In response to the claims of misinformation, a UNISON spokesperson said: “The accusation of ‘misinformation’ would be laughable if it didn’t have such serious consequences for the wellbeing of staff and residents. The Trust’s preferred line that “no one will be worse off” from these proposals has left members angry and hurt."
The union claims that some members have received letters telling them "their contractual pay is being cut by thousands, with some losing over £5,200 a year". Bristol Live approached the Trust for comment on this statistic.
The statement from the union continued: "In addition, their contractual sick pay is being cut back and their working hours reduced. We can’t see how any sensible person would understand that as “no worse off”. UNISON understands that the people our members care for are dearly loved by their family and friends, and that those relatives will all be worrying about what is going on and how they might help.
"That’s why we’re hosting a public information evening at the Greenway centre on Monday May 23 at 7pm. We’re encouraging anyone connected to The Trust to come down and ask questions, see for yourself what staff are facing and network with each other to build support for the workers and residents alike.”
'Pay protection'
In a further statement responding to UNISON, St Monica Trust chief executive David Williams said: “Within this consultation process the St Monica Trust are offering our care home colleagues pay protection for the next 12 months.
“This means that the Trust is guaranteeing that no colleagues affected by the proposal will be worse off. All St Monica Trust colleagues were also awarded a 4% pay rise this year, which is far higher than the average pay increase for the health and social care sector.
“This reflects how much we value our colleagues and the Trust is committed to making these necessary changes to our care homes in a way which will ensure a smooth transition for all involved.”
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