Trust moves to London Living Wage for all facilities staff
All cleaning, catering, portering and helpdesk staff working at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust will receive the London Living Wage as the new minimum pay rate backdated to 1 November 2019. The staff, currently employed by Sodexo, will have a pay increase to £10.55 per hour.
Imperial College Healthcare specified an increase to the London Living Wage as the minimum pay level as part of a planned retendering of its facilities management contract, due to be completed shortly, with the new contract to begin in April 2020. Since the Trust announced its intention in April this year, it has been exploring the possibility of moving to the new pay level within its existing contract with Sodexo so that the pay increase could be achieved sooner.
Following discussions with Sodexo and with UNISON, the Trust is enabling a formal offer to be made to move to the London Living Wage as of 1 November 2019. The Trust was able to commit the additional in-year investment – around £1 million – following a review of its mid-year financial position.
Professor Tim Orchard, chief executive of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, said:
“I am very clear that all of the staff who work in our hospitals – whether employed directly by us or through contracts with specialist companies – should be part of one team. The high quality care we provide to our patients is the result of collaboration between many different people and every role is important.
“I am really pleased that, following a review of our mid-year financial position, we are able to support pay rises for our cleaning, portering and other essential facilities staff sooner than planned. I am grateful to Sodexo, UNISON and our support staff for the positive collaborative working that has helped to make this development possible.”
Imperial College Healthcare is also working with UNISON to determine how a move to the London Living Wage as the minimum pay rate can best be achieved for staff employed through other external contracts.
The London Living Wage is the hourly minimum wage set annually by the Living Wage Foundation and calculated by the Resolution Foundation based on the best available evidence about living standards in the UK. It is optional for employers but is intended to raise the pay of those on the lowest incomes to ensure it covers the basic cost of living and working in London. All staff directly employed by the Trust are already paid above the London Living Wage.
