Alistair Tice
Over 30 Barnsley nursery workers, all women, all members of the GMB trade union, took strike action on 9 November to oppose the Reform-led council’s plans to outsource six nurseries to a private provider and take them out of the Local Government Pension Scheme.
GMB organiser Vicky Austen said that this will “significantly lower payout in their retirement and remove their Death in Service entitlement.” One worker said it would cost her £10,000 a year in reduced pension.
Reform took over Barnsley council in May. Council leader William Brown says they are doing this to protect jobs and retain these services. Well, one nursery, at Grimethorpe in his council ward, has already closed due to another private provider pulling out and de-registering the nursery, leaving some children, including some with special needs, without nursery provision. So much for Reform as a party for the working class!
The Labour council leader attended the picket in Grimethorpe. But it was the Labour council which proposed privatisation of the nurseries in the first place two years ago! They said that the nurseries were losing money. They would have known that private providers would run it for a profit at the expense of workers and the service.
The nursery staff came forward with their own proposals to expand the service into wraparound and non-term time provision, but these were refused. So they voted unanimously for strike action.
They held a town centre rally on 29 October and have more strikes planned on 18 and 26 November, when they will lobby the council meeting.
One worker told me: “I don’t know if we’ll change anything, but there are times when you’ve just got to stand up for yourselves!”
