Cleaners at one of the most prestigious private girls’ schools in the country have voted for strike action after being told out of the blue they are to be docked five weeks of work a year.
The dispute has broken out at James Allen’s girls’ school (Jags) in Dulwich, south-east London, founded in 1741, which was the target of strike action by teachers in the National Education Union earlier this year over planned changes to their pensions.
The school, which boasts almost nine hectares (22 acres) of playing fields, a purpose-built theatre and ozone-filtered swimming pool, is now facing industrial action by about 20 members of United Voices of the World (UVW), a grassroots trade union for low-paid, migrant workers.
Some of them have cleaned the school for years. They say the changes to their contracts, which will mean their annual working weeks will be reduced from 43 to 38, were made without consultation and are “deeply unfair”.
Jags is one of a number of independent schools to have faced strike action by teachers over attempts to change their pension arrangements after employer contributions to the teachers’ pension scheme (TPS) went up to almost 29%. There have also been concerns in the sector about the new government’s plans to add VAT to school fees.
The Dulwich school, whose alumnae include the Booker prize-winning author Anita Brookner and the former Conservative minister Claire Coutinho, said the dispute over hours was between the cleaners and the contractor they worked for and were related to a change to the school’s cleaning needs during holidays.
A Jags spokesperson said: “The disputed employment arrangements are directly between the employer, DB Services, and their staff. These developments have nothing to do with VAT on school fees but reflect a change to the school’s requirements during school holidays.”
Former pupils have written to the headteacher, Alex Hutchinson, to complain, including the portrait painter Rebecca Cartwright, who said: “Shame on Jags. When companies contract work out they create the conditions of work for the employees who do the work for the contracting company through the terms of the contract itself.
“A privileged institution like Jags should be setting an example in their employment practices, to other institutions and to their pupils.”
Correspondence from DB Services showed the company promised an uplift in pay to £13.15 an hour, the London living wage, if staff agreed to the cut in weeks. If they failed to sign the contract, their pay would be pegged at £11.55. DB Services did not respond to requests for comment.
UVW said the savings made by the proposed cleaning cuts would amount to about £20,000 – less than the annual fees for a single student at the school. “Jags should be ashamed,” said Petros Elia, the UVW’s general secretary. “The savings they make are a drop in the ocean compared to the school’s immense income and wealth.”
Gloria Chalaco, 48, has worked as a cleaner at Jags for two years. Originally from Ecuador, she has three grownup children and four grandchildren and is struggling to pay her bills after splitting with her partner.
She works at the school from 5.30am to 8am, then dashes to a second job cleaning a theatre between 8.30am and 12.30pm, before returning to the school to clean again from 3.30pm to 6pm.
“It’s hard to have to work so many hours, but I have no choice. I have to pay all the bills,” said Chalaco. She is also aware that as she gets older she will not be able to do so many hours, so is trying to make as much money as possible now.
“We are ready to strike because losing five weeks of work per year is deeply unfair. Our bills and rent don’t stop. On top of that, we don’t have sick pay. When we get sick, we either work while ill or lose our pay. They don’t respect us, the cleaners, as people with the same needs and rights as everyone else,” she added.
Guido Fabián Guallichico, who has worked as a cleaner at Jags for 12 years, said: “We are demanding our rights as workers because cleaners are treated as if we have no rights, as if we don’t matter. But we are workers like everyone else and we want our rights to be respected.”
The school responded: “We value everyone who contributes to life at Jags and we are confident that DB Services and its staff can work together to find a constructive solution. If during the negotiations between the union and DB Services there is anything with which Jags can assist, we will carefully consider any points raised.”
