Justice for cleaners event to be held at Liverpool Lime St.

Rail Union RMT will be carrying out a leafleting event at Liverpool Lime Street Station tomorrow demanding Justice for Mitie cleaners on Network Rail Managed Stations ‎and urging the public to sign the petition supporting a Real Living Wage for a group of crucial staff who do some of the dirtiest jobs on our railways.

The leafleting will take place:
*Outside LIVERPOOL LIME STREET (Main Entrance) on FRIDAY 30th August 2019 - 16.30 to 18.00

The campaign is receiving tremendous support, in just three weeks over 60,000 people have signed RMT's petition backing the Mitie workers' fight for justice.‎ Political support is also rolling in.

The campaign highlights the fact that passengers using Liverpool Lime Street, Glasgow Central, Edinburgh Waverley, Manchester Piccadilly, Leeds City or Birmingham New Street stations, are passing through stations that are cleaned, day and night, by people who are surviving on poverty pay.

Network Rail has outsourced the work of cleaning many of their stations to a company called Mitie Facilities Management, part of the Mitie Group plc. Mitie Group paid nearly £49 million to its shareholders in dividends in the last five years. But it won’t pay its cleaners the Real Living Wage.

A recent survey carried out by RMT of Mitie workers came back with 50% of respondents saying they struggled to make ends meet. The union believes that a multi-million pound public company like Network Rail should not be allowing its contractors to pay poverty wages.

The petition can be found at https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/pay-the-living-wage-to-mitie-cleaners-now

Further leafleting campaigns outside the Network Rail Managed Stations on the contract will take place:

*Outside MANCHESTER PICCADILLY (Piccadilly approach) on MONDAY 2nd September 2019 - 16.30 to 18.00
*Outside LEEDS CITY STATION (Aire Street/ Wellington Street entrance) on TUESDAY 3rd September 2019 - 16.30 to 18.00
*Outside BIRMINGHAM NEW STREET (near the tram stop) on WEDNESDAY 4th September 2019 - 16.30 to 18.00

General Secretary, Mick Cash said:

“RMT’s campaign demanding a Real Living Wage for Mitie cleaners will be coming to Liverpool tomorrow.
"We now have over 60,000 signatures on the petition in support of this fight for pay and workplace justice, along with growing political backing, and it is time for Mitie and Network Rail to end this disgraceful exploitation and take urgent action.
“It is a scandal that the staff employed by outsourcing giant Mitie who clean stations for Network Rail, doing some of the dirtiest work in the rail industry at all hours of the night and day, are struggling to make ends meet on poverty pay.

“A company that can pay nearly £49 million to its shareholders in dividends in the last five years for doing nothing can afford to pay its cleaners a decent wage for the work that they do.

“Mitie’s cleaners have had enough and are fighting for a real Living Wage, but they need the help of the travelling public and I would urge passengers to sign the petition and help us to persuade Mitie and Network Rail to put an end to this scandal.

“RMT will be doing all it can to support Mitie cleaners, cleaning up the vomit, human waste and the rest of the filth at our stations, in their fight to make this wealthy company do the right thing and pay its workers a Real Living Wage.”

Ends