I would just like to start by introducing myself to you.
I am Nikki Booth and I hold the position of the northern region RMPFS cleaners CWU representative/ I am also a CWU trained mental health first aider (MHFA)
I would like to start by thanking every one of you for taking the time to read this as it’s something I feel very, very strongly about!
I am extremely upset about the recent situation in RMPFS and the decision not to negotiate a pay rise for us as a group.
I personally know of CWU cleaning members who left the business due to severe anxieties caused by the fear of Covid-19, Many of the colleagues who I represent put themselves ‘In the firing line’ by effectively cleaning a deadly virus with only a £200 bonus to show for their eforts.
They placed their own lives on the line during the height of the pandemic and that of their loved ones too, who let’s not forget were also were at risk of catching a serious virus being transmitted from a workplace into the home.
Sadly, the Employer has decided that they are not to give out a pay rise, despite the exceptional efforts during the pandemic which now seem to be long over-looked.
To be told your value is 0% is both exasperating and insulting!
I know all too well, that the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has taken a very significant toll on cleaning members and other members within the business, the stress and anxiety caused by having to come into work every day and not know what the situation is on that day/week had a massive impact on most of us, including myself.
I had severe anxiety at the thought of putting my own family at risk, I am not ashamed to say that I am currently on medication for anxiety. However, I am in a lot better place than I was, but some days I still have relapses. I began to understand and accept that it is ok to have good and bad days.
IT’S OK NOT TO BE OK
Almost every day during the pandemic and beyond, I received calls and messages, relaying constant fears and anxieties brought to the fore due to yet another ‘Covid-19 clean’ having to be done, the past two years have had a massive impact on colleague’s mental health. This impact was one of the fundamental reasons why I decided to become a mental health first aider, it helps me to be able to help others in turn.
The business must now recognise just what the cleaning membership went through and pay up accordingly. It is never acceptable to just ignore the last two years of constant hard work, harder than normal, more intense than usual, to then tell you that you will not get a pay rise and you are worth nothing extra or the sum-total of 0%, think about that for a second- zero percent!!
Our colleagues were NOT just cleaning workplaces they were CLEANSING workplaces, there is a huge difference.
We all have mental health and EVERYONE has a value.
I want to thank you for taking the time to read this and my main hope is that we can break the stigma surrounding that of mental health.
Let’s talk more, open up more, stand together more, and we will be more.
Thankyou
Nikki Booth
Northern Region RMPFS CWU Rep
CWU Mental Health First Aider
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