CIP, the arms length management company set up to take care of the borough's leisure facilities, may be putting up to 14 of it's workers' jobs at risk, as the result of a new contract for grounds maintenance work within the borough, according to Hounslow's UNISON trade union secretary.

At least 14 workers who look after ground maintenance, will have their contracts transferred from working for the council, to working for the new companies that will be looking after the maintenance work.

The contract for the work was previously held by the Community Initiative Partnership (CIP), but was awarded to Sohexho and Pinnacle-psg, after CIP's bid failed to match their competitive rates. The seven year contracts are estimated to be worth around £600,000 per annum.

But Iain Raymond, the secretary for the Hounslow Unison branch, is worried that the workers' jobs will not be safe. Private firms generally pay less than public services and have fewer benefits such as pensions, but under the contracts the companies will be forced to pay public sector rates.

He said, There is an issue over the number of staff these companies will have to take on under the Transfer of Undertakings and Protection of Employment regulations.''

He continued, It's just not in their interest to keep these workers on for longer than they have to.'' He was angry that the public workers, who would now be employed by companies which offered the lowest pay they could get away with'' would be forced to take these conditions on''.

He argued that this situation had arisen before, and that the contracts never lasted that long, as there was no profit to be made in the public sector contracts.

But Julian Knott, Director of Commercial Services at CIP, remained calm, as he assured staff that their jobs were safe. He added that CIP bid for the gardening work in competition with other contractors but it was not successful. We are currently involved in negotiations to make sure the transfer goes smoothly and staff will move to the new organisations.''

CIP has been through some rough times recently with a third of its grounds staff being made redundant last December, after numerous complaints about its service and a £600,000 cut in its budget over the past ten year.

May 1, 2003 16:00