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Reduced Cleaning Regime Of BT Work Places Puts Health At Risk

The CWU has raised serious health concerns with BT over the new contract with their agents Monteray who provide many facility management services including the cleaning of all of BT buildings and telephone exchanges. There is estimated to be around a loss of some 370 cleaning jobs as well as a decrease in the working environment as result of lowering of cleaning standards required.

Click the pic!CWU's website headlines the current situation and calls for all Branches and members to raise their concerns with Monteray and BT. The news items says:

"BT's contract with Monteray has been drastically reduced - by around 22%. This will impact significantly on a wide variety of tasks that Monteray undertake across the BT estate, and has lead to 75%, or 1711 Monteray employees being placed at risk of compulsory redundancy.

One area of particular concern is the revised arrangements for cleaning. Under a contractual variation which we understand has already been signed by BT and Monteray, cleaning across the estate will reduce from 42,000 hours a year presently to 30,300 hours - a reduction of nearly 30%. This will lead, we estimate, to in excess of 370 cleaning jobs being lost from Monteray. The new contractual arrangements mean that cleaning frequencies will be significantly reduced, and the "quality assurance" required will change: Previously there was a requirement to maintain a standard at all times. The new arrangement requires a standard to be achieved at point of clean/site visit with set frequencies only.

We think this is misguided and a false economy - especially as assessments of cleaning needs have discounted the number of visiting and field staff The TFSE, aided by branch and lay representatives, has been vigorous in trying to assist members in this very difficult situation, and in challenging the assertions made by employers in order to mitigate the number of redundancies and stem the anticipated deterioration in service that we feel is inevitable.

Worryingly, we do not believe appropriate visibility has been given to this issue. We have therefore produced some eye-catching publicity. Branches are urged to reproduce this locally and display it widely. Hard copies in A3 and A4 format are available from my office at CWU HQ. The poster is part of an ongoing campaign to respond to the concerns of our members in both Monteray and BT, and in support of a better working environment."

The pic above is of the downloadable poster (in PDF format) and all CWU members working for BT are being urged to download it and raise their concerns with the company.

Source: CWU



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