Health support worker at UHS
Everyone deserves to be treated with respect and dignity at work. Porters at Southampton General Hospital, organised in Unite, have had enough, and have voted overwhelmingly for strike action.
No one takes a decision like this lightly, but this has been brewing for a long time. The strength of feeling was demonstrated by the 76% turnout, 98% in favour of strike action.
The official statement from the hospital says: “Our portering service and colleagues are a valuable and an intrinsic part of the successful running of UHS [University Hospital Southampton NHS Trust, which Southampton General is part of] and all we do for patients.”
But porters don’t feel valued! There is clearly a gap between what management say at the top and what happens in practice. Porters describe having to tell the boss they’re on their period, struggling to find drinking water and somewhere to sit between jobs. Pressure is always on to complete more work in less time. Porters are often put in an impossible position assessing the medical/infection risk of patients they transport, and being blamed for any delays.
Porters are paid not much more than the minimum wage, and many survive on food banks – so extra shifts being allocated unfairly is high up on the list of grievances. There is widescale support for our porters amongst staff, who recognise their value and will want to show solidarity.
- Pickets will happen on strike days from 6am – 3pm every Monday and Friday from 28 November
