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Staff at Quarriers accept cuts in pay and conditions

Finance | Gareth Jones | 28 Oct 2009

Social care charity Quarriers has come to an agreement with its 2,000-strong workforce on proposed changes to terms and conditions.

The charity entered a 90-day consultation with staff in July amid claims from the trade union Unison that bosses had threatened to dismiss the entire staff and hire them back on renegotiated contracts unless they agreed to cuts in wages and conditions.

Now staff have agreed to a number of changes, including:

• The phasing out of the current policy of paying staff extra money over and above their salary for working night shifts;
• The transfer of half of employees’ existing public holiday entitlement to their annual leave entitlement;
• Reduced sick pay allowance in line with other social care organisations; and
• No cost-of-living pay increase for employees in 2009.

Phil Robinson (pictured), chief executive of Quarriers, said the changes are necessary due to funding shortfalls.

“Organisations across the sector are struggling with funding shortfalls and local authorities – who are the main sources of funding for our organisation – are now operating in a very challenging fiscal environment.

“Quarriers needs to reduce its costs in order to continue to provide the current level of service to some of the most vulnerable people in Scotland and across the UK.”

Full cost recovery requested

Stephen Brown, branch secretary, of UNISON Quarriers' branch, said the union had presented a petition to the Scottish government calling for full cost recovery for the sector.

“The problems for charities and voluntary organisations such as Quarriers stems from a drop in funding following the Scottish government's concordat with local authorities and subsequent cuts year on year.”

Staff at Quarriers had previously taken strike action in 2007 before accepting a 2.5 per cent pay increase.

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