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Link to this page: https://www.socialistparty.org.uk/articles/24299

Posted on 25 January 2017 at 12:27 GMT

Picket line at Morriston hospital, Swansea, 25.1.17, photo by Alec Thraves (Click to enlarge)

Successful and solid one-day strike at ABMU Health Board

Alec Thraves, Swansea Socialist Party

Hospital Sterilisation and Disinfection Unit (HSDU) workers at Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University (ABMU) Health Board, covering Swansea, Neath/Port Talbot and Bridgend have been forced into taking strike action in an effort to bring their pay banding up to the equivalent of other HSDU workers in Health Boards across Wales.

As the lengthy name of their unit suggests, we would all be in a lot of trouble without the skill and dedicated work of these vital NHS staff who decontaminate operating theatres, wards, clinics and A&E departments as well as preparing surgical equipment to the highest standard of cleanliness.

As one striker at Morriston hospital in Swansea explained:

"We have to clean, sterilise and reassemble surgical equipment that has been contaminated with bits of bone, brain and grizzle. This is a skilled and difficult job but we are just taken for granted by management".

These workers are obviously highly skilled technicians but are still working to job descriptions that were written in 2004. Recognising the specialist expertise and competence required for this job other Health Boards in Wales have upgraded their HSDU technicians from band 2 up to band 3 which is still only an increase of starting pay from £8.25 an hour to £8.49.

Little wonder that after almost two years of unsuccessful negotiations with management there was a 79% turnout and a 96% vote for strike action by these Unison members.

The determined mood on the picket lines today should be a warning to management that unless these workers are brought in line with the banding of their counterparts across Wales then another 24-hour strike will take place next Wednesday.

This version of this article was first posted on the Socialist Party website on 25 January 2017 and may vary slightly from the version subsequently printed in The Socialist.

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The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.

The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.

The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.

The Socialist Party's material is more vital than ever, so we can continue to report from workers who are fighting for better health and safety measures, against layoffs, for adequate staffing levels, etc.
When the health crisis subsides, we must be ready for the stormy events ahead and the need to arm workers' movements with a socialist programme - one which puts the health and needs of humanity before the profits of a few.