As part of its 2025-6 pay claims, RMT has demanded Bidvest Noonan, which employs cleaners on the Docklands Light Railway, c2c, and elsewhere, introduce company sick pay.
Currently, cleaners have no sick pay, meaning they literally can't afford to be ill.
Bidvest Noonan has responded by saying they're prepared to implement one week of sick pay... in cases of a terminal diagnosis! How incredibly generous, one week of sick pay, but only if you're dying!
It's scandalous stuff. It's particularly outrageous given that c2c, one of the Train Operating Companies that outsources its cleaning to Bidvest, has just been nationalised. But it's a limited form of nationalisation which doesn't reverse the outsourcing (i.e., privatisation) of cleaning and other services, and means cleaners will continue to face much worse conditions than their directly-employed workmates.
RMT will rightly be challenging this via industrial action ballots and political campaigning. Other rail unions must also pressure Labour to go further on nationalisation, and deliver the "wave of insourcing" Angela Rayner has promised.
This is welcome news.
However, @UKLabour also promised the "biggest wave of insourcing in a generation", yet the outsourced cleaners on @c2c_Rail have just been offered a weeks sick pay...
but only if they're dying!! https://t.co/0tRiYP8eCM pic.twitter.com/LEu3XbK3ta— RMT (@RMTunion) July 20, 2025
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