Islington Council this week made a budget commitment(1) to give fourteen Greenspace(2) agency staff full time contracts following months of campaigning by Islington Green Party.
Opposition councillor Caroline Russell and local Greens are celebrating this change of heart from the Labour-run council which will see workers receive job security and full employee rights. This move comes after sole Green councillor Caroline Russell mounted a campaign on the issue of why these in-house staff were still on agency contracts several years after having come in house.(3)
Cllr Caroline Russell said “After having met one of my constituents I was deeply concerned that a number of council staff responsible for park maintenance were only on agency contracts. Despite providing a vital local service these staff faced the uncertainty of whether their agency contract would be renewed, or indeed scrapped with only one week’s notice.”
“These agency staff were not paid for sick leave and could only accrue holiday leave. Their employment status also meant that some workers felt in a constant state of limbo, unsure whether work would continue but unable to go on to seek life improving opportunities like apprenticeships due to being classed as employed.”
“I’m delighted that Islington Labour has finally agreed to make this change. If staff are providing year round work on vital services they should be granted full time contracts. This is a clear example of how a Green opposition can successfully push Islington Council into being more progressive and do better for our borough’s workers.”
References
1. Islington Council budget proposals are viewable here
2. Islington Greenspace work is detailed here
3. At full council on December 4th 2014 Caroline Russell asked
“Since bringing grounds maintenance in house, how many staff have been employed through agencies rather than by the council direct? And what has the cost of this been compared with direct employment?”
Cllr Webbe’s response and the full council minutes are here
