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COURT cleaners demanded justice yesterday as they launched a series of strikes in a campaign to secure a living wage.
Most of London’s court cleaners are paid a mere £6.70 an hour through private contractor Mitie.
Pickets took a stand at Southwark Crown Court, and workers told the Star more actions will be taking place at courts and tribunal sites across the capital.
Mitie declared £49 million in profits back in 2014. Chief executive Ruby McGregor-Smith is reportedly on a whopping £1.5 million a year.
Independent Workers Union of Great Britain general secretary Alberto Durango, who co-ordinated the strike, told the Star: “Mitie is getting a lot of profits out of the legal system and out of the government.
“We are very proud that the workers are here fighting for justice, it’s a change for the government, it’s a change for the system.
“We are targeting all the courts around London in order to make a bigger campaign,” he said.
According to Mr Durango, the picket line was “solid,” buoyed by receiving wholehearted support from members of the public who stopped to sign the workers’ petition.
They also garnered the sympathy of legal staff and members of the Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers.
Haldane’s executive committee member Sam Parham said: “Cleaning staff in our courts provide a vital service.
“It’s an outrage that they are paid so little whilst those who employ them suck so much money out of the public sector.
“We’re proud to stand alongside all of those who are victims of the privatisation and outsourcing of our public services.”
The London living wage, as calculated by the Living Wage Foundation, is £9.40 an hour.
