Camden caterers demand the Living Wage, March 2015, photo Reel News

Camden caterers demand the Living Wage, March 2015, photo Reel News   (Click to enlarge: opens in new window)

Nick Auvache

“It is nothing less than a paralysis of will caused by an inability to basically understand the privations suffered by the very people they claim to represent.”

This was how the Camden New Journal described the decision of Labour-led Camden council on 2 March not to implement the Camden school caterers’ claim for the London Living Wage.

Only two years ago the council proudly boasted it would pay all staff the London Living Wage. Apparently that does not extend to the school catering workers as they are “contracted out”.

Employers Caterlink pay the workers a miserly £6.60 an hour. Camden council says it cannot afford to fund the increase to £9.15 an hour.

How convenient it is for this Labour council to offload the responsibility. But they could not ignore the workers’ loud protests outside the town hall.

These workers are preparing food for school students but barely earn enough to put food on the table for their own families!

No bus fare

One worker at the demo spoke about how she had to walk the long distance to work and back because she did not have enough money to pay for the bus fare.

This is the sort of misery which councils are causing and then washing their hands of the problem by hiding behind private contractors.

But the catering workers are having none of it. They have got their own petition calling for the council to increase their pay with immediate effect.

If that is not successful, they will ballot for industrial action. Camden Socialist Party and TUSC will stand shoulder to shoulder with them.