Workers at outsourcing and professional services firm Capita’s Life and Pensions division have begun further strike action in a dispute over a fair pay offer for 2024.
The dispute centres on Glasgow and Manchester-based staff, who deliver services for Royal London and are members of trade union Unite.
They will strike until Monday 7 April at 5.59am, having started yesterday, and will then resume from 6.00am on Monday 7 April and continue until 11.59pm on Tuesday 22 April. This follows 13 strike days earlier this year, from 29 January until 4 February and 26 February until 7 March.
The strike is taking place because the workers have argued they were due a consolidated pay award in April 2024, but Capita postponed negotiations with Unite. They claimed a pay rise in October was promised but never materialised, while a belated, non-consolidated one-off pay offer was tabled but was rejected by members.
A Capita spokesperson said: “Disappointingly, the revised pay offer we presented to union representatives was not accepted at ballot, so our plans to mitigate the impact of industrial action remain in place.”
Sharon Graham, general secretary at Unite, added: “Our members have waited a year for a fair pay deal and have been met with nothing but delay, excuses and an offer that fails to meet the cost-of-living pressures they face. Capita has the financial resources to do the right thing. Unite stands 100% behind our members in their fight for decent pay.”
Dominic Hook, national officer at Unite, said: “Capita has had countless opportunities to resolve this dispute through proper negotiations. Our members are standing firm, they deserve a fair, consolidated pay rise, not piecemeal offers. As a result of Capita’s inaction, its services for clients such as Royal London will now be hit by significant disruption.”
