Job evaluation row

Customer service assistants, employed by Sandwell council, who are members of Unite will begin industrial action on Friday, May 10, in a pay dispute over job grading.

The 14 members of Unite voted 100 per cent in favour of industrial action on an 85.7 per cent turnout.

The dispute is a result of a botched job evaluation process which failed to take into account the emotional demands that the workers have to face, as they act as the frontline of council services, dealing with demanding issues such as homelessness cases.

As part of the industrial action the customer assistants will not undertake work which they were not assessed on, including not dealing with eviction queries, queries from coucillors, homelessness cases, anti-social behaviour cases, among other work.

The affected workers are paid between ÂŁ19,000 – ÂŁ20,000 per annum and Unite believes that if the job evaluation process had been properly applied, the workers will eventually earn an additional ÂŁ5,000 per annum.

Unite has sought to resolve the issue through negotiation but its attempts have been repeatedly rebuffed by Sandwell council.

“Sandwell council has botched its job evaluation exercise and failed to consider the demanding roles our members undertake for and on behalf of the general public,” said Unite regional officer Brian Rickers.

“Rather than deal with the problem Sandwell has put its head in the sand and hoped that it would go away.

“Our members will not continue to allow themselves to be exploited and are being forced to take industrial action as a last resort.

“As Sandwell council has refused to acknowledge key parts of the roles that customer assistants undertake it is only reasonable that they withdraw from performing these roles.

“The industrial action will inevitably cause disruption to the service that Sandwell provides to its residents but this is entirely of the council’s own making and which has the power to resolve it.”