Contacting the Branch

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If you have any questions or need any support please contact the Branch Office

 contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

Or you can call 020 8359 2088, if we are unable to answer the telephone please leave a message speaking slowly and clearly please include your name, telephone number, membership number and a brief message about the assistance you require. We will respond as soon as we can.

Alternatively you can contact UNISON Direct Call Centre by telephone 

08000 857 857 Monday – Friday 6am – Midnight, Saturday 9am – 4pm

or make an online enquiry by clicking the following link

https://www.unison.org.uk/get-help/online-enquiries/

To Join UNISON click the following link 

https://join.unison.org.uk/

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — JULY 2026 BARNET COUNCIL WORKERS UNDERPAID FOR TWELVE YEARS — AND OFFERED A FRACTION OF WHAT THEY ARE OWED

Austerity, Local, News, Solidarity, UNISON Campaign

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — JULY 2026

BARNET COUNCIL WORKERS UNDERPAID FOR TWELVE YEARS — AND OFFERED A FRACTION OF WHAT THEY ARE OWED

Barnet UNISON publishes the council’s offer and begins member consultation — as depot workers demand a strike ballot

Barnet UNISON is today publishing details of a formal settlement offer from the London Borough of Barnet following twelve years of holiday pay underpayments affecting council workers across waste and recycling, street cleansing, grounds maintenance, libraries, social care and other services.

The offer — six months’ backdated pay at 8.33% of non-contractual overtime — has been condemned by Barnet UNISON as wholly inadequate. The union is now consulting all affected members over the next four – six weeks.

What the offer means in real money

The law — confirmed at Supreme Court level — requires that regular non-contractual overtime is factored into holiday pay calculations. It was not, for twelve years. The table below shows what the council’s offer means for two typical depot roles, compared to what workers are actually owed on the same calculation:

 

Role Owed (12 years) Council offer (6 months)
Loader (Grade B) approx. £9,600 approx. £400
Driver (Grade F) approx. £14,400 approx. £600

(These figures are based on real overtime earnings for two depot roles and are given as examples only. Individual amounts will vary depending on how much overtime was worked over the twelve years. For some members it will be less — for others it could be considerably more.)

On the council’s own methodology, the full twelve-year liability runs to approximately £6 million. The council is offering £250,000 — shared across all affected Council staff.

That is roughly 4p for every £1 owed.

How it came to light

The council’s HR department did not raise this as an error. HR meets with Barnet UNISON at least once a week. Not once in twelve years did it acknowledge that holiday pay was being calculated incorrectly.

The issue came to light in April 2025 when members working in the depots noticed new payments on their payslips after Liberata took over the payroll contract from Capita and came to UNISON asking what they were. Low-paid workers reading their own payslips is what finally brought twelve years of underpayments to the surface.

Capita — the contractor at the centre of this failure

Capita ran the council’s payroll from October 2013 to 31 March 2025 — throughout the entire period the underpayment occurred and went uncorrected. The moment Liberata replaced Capita, the correct calculation began.

 

The Capita record at Barnet — by the numbers

•      Total paid to Capita since 2013: approximately £670 million — around £246 million more than the original contract value of £424 million (source: published council supplier payment data, analysed by independent researcher John Dix / Mr Reasonable)

•      Final year with most services returned in-house: Barnet still paid Capita £24 million — £2 million per month — for just three remaining services

•      A Capita employee stole £2,063,972 through fictitious compulsory purchase order payments. He was jailed for five years

•      Grant Thornton review (Project Rose) found: no budgetary controls, no basic bank detail checks, inexperienced managers handling large sums, no written financial procedures. The review cost up to £500,000 of public money

•      Around 170 council workers had pension contributions deducted from their wages by Capita but were never enrolled into the pension scheme

•      Barnet became the first public service pension scheme in the country to be fined by the Pensions Regulator — on Capita’s watch

•      Capita required to repay the council £4.12 million for delivery failures under the contract

The One Barnet programme was awarded by the previous Conservative administration in 2013 and described at the time as a model for efficient public services. The Guardian later described it as a “disastrous ideological outsourcing spending spree” that handed an array of local services to Capita. The promised savings never materialised. The bills kept growing.

The previous Conservative administration initially refused to publish the Grant Thornton report into the fraud, claiming it was not in the public interest. It was eventually published quietly on the council website with no announcement.

The offer — and the questions it raises

The council has cited severe financial pressure and described the payment as a “gesture of goodwill.” Barnet UNISON does not accept that framing. This is not a gesture of goodwill. It is money workers earned and were legally entitled to. The council’s own financial difficulties do not diminish what is owed.

They do, however, raise a direct question: has the council formally approached Capita about its financial responsibility for a payroll failure that persisted for twelve years under its management? If the council is under financial pressure, the answer is to pursue the contractor that failed — not to offer workers as little as possible.

The council also noted in its formal offer that it is “out of time” to make a backdated payment — yet simultaneously offered a backdated payment. Barnet UNISON has taken note of that contradiction.

What happens next

Barnet UNISON is today launching a four-week consultation of all affected members. If you have worked regular overtime at any point in the last twelve years, this may affect you. Members are encouraged to read the full details and contact the branch with any questions.

Barnet UNISON can confirm that one group of workers — depot staff in waste, recycling, street cleansing and grounds maintenance — have already made clear they regard this offer as wholly unacceptable and have demanded that UNISON ballot them for industrial action if the offer is not substantially improved.

If the consultation produces a strong vote to reject, Barnet UNISON will seek an urgent meeting with the Chief Executive to press for a substantially improved offer. If the employer refuses to negotiate further, Barnet UNISON will contact UNISON HQ with a view to proceeding to a formal, lawful strike ballot.

John Burgess, Branch Secretary, Barnet UNISON

This is what outsourcing looks like when it goes wrong and nobody is held to account. Capita ran Barnet’s payroll for twelve years. In that time, they failed to calculate holiday pay correctly, failed to enrol workers into their pensions properly, presided over a £2 million fraud, and walked away with the best part of £670 million of public money — around £246 million more than the contract was worth. The council either could not or would not hold them to account. And now, when the workers who were underpaid throughout all of that ask for what they are owed, the employer says there is no money.

 

There is always money when it comes to paying private contractors. There was apparently no money when it came to paying the people who empty the bins, clean the streets and keep this borough running.

 

This is a grave injustice. It is a clear example of how outsourcing damages workers and how weak this council was at holding Capita to account. We are consulting our members. Depot workers have already told us they want a ballot. We will be listening to what all of our members say — and we will act on it.

Get in touch

If you are an affected member and have questions about this offer, contact Barnet UNISON at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk or visit barnetunison.me.uk

 

Notes to Editors

Barnet UNISON represents approximately 3,000 workers employed by the London Borough of Barnet, The Barnet Group, Barnet Education and Learning Skills, and a range of contractors and associated employers. Members include street cleansing and waste workers, care workers, school support staff, social workers, council office staff and caretakers.

The legal obligation to include regular non-contractual overtime in holiday pay calculations arises from the Working Time Regulations 1998 and has been confirmed through a series of appellate decisions culminating in the Supreme Court judgment in Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland v Agnew [2023].

The £670 million total Capita payment figure is sourced from John Dix’s independent annual analysis of Barnet Council’s published supplier payment data, available at reasonablenewbarnet.blogspot.com. The original combined contract value over ten years was approximately £424 million (source: Grant Thornton Project Rose review, published September 2018). The figure of £670 million should be attributed to published supplier payment data rather than cited as an official council figure.

The Grant Thornton Project Rose review is publicly available on the Barnet Council website. Trishul Shah was convicted of fraud and jailed for five years.

The holiday pay calculation was corrected from 1 April 2025, coinciding with Liberata taking over the payroll function from Capita.

Example figures (Loader approx. £400 offer / approx. £9,600 owed; Driver approx. £600 offer / approx. £14,400 owed) are illustrative, based on real overtime earnings data for those roles. Individual amounts will vary.

Media enquiries: contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

BARNET COUNCIL QUIETLY HALVED ITS PASSENGER ASSISTANT WORKFORCE — AND NEVER TOLD THE UNION

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Health and Safety, Local, News, Solidarity, Trades Dispute, UNISON Campaign

BARNET COUNCIL QUIETLY HALVED ITS PASSENGER ASSISTANT WORKFORCE — AND NEVER TOLD THE UNION

Trade union demands answers on outsourcing by stealth and the employment standards of workers supporting children with complex SEN needs

Barnet UNISON has formally challenged London Borough of Barnet and BELS management over the steady dismantling of the directly employed Passenger Assistant workforce — the staff who accompany children with special educational needs on school transport routes across the borough every day.

The directly employed workforce has been cut from approximately 85 in January 2021 to 42 today — a reduction of more than 50%. There are now 61 externally commissioned Passenger Assistants working on regular routes, outnumbering directly employed council staff. The council’s own documents confirm that vacancies have not been routinely refilled and that commissioned workers are used to meet continuing demand. No formal outsourcing exercise took place. No trade union consultation happened. No equality impact assessment was carried out.

Outsourcing in all but name

UNISON’s formal response — submitted to the JNCG chaired by the Chief Executive on 16 June 2026 — sets out that the council has effectively outsourced a public service through attrition: allowing permanent posts to disappear and replacing them with externally commissioned workers, without ever putting that decision to elected members as a workforce question or consulting the trade union.

A Cabinet report in May 2025 approved an external provider framework worth up to £1 million per year — £8 million over eight years. The same report records “None” under Consultation. The council is now saying that restoring direct employment would cost £225,000 per year more than the current model. That comparison has never been presented to Cabinet.

UNISON Branch Secretary John Burgess said: “The council hasn’t formally outsourced this service — it’s just stopped replacing people when they leave and handed the work to external providers instead. The outcome is the same. You’ve gone from 85 directly employed staff to 42, with 61 commissioned workers on regular routes doing the same job. No consultation, no equality assessment, no transparency. We need a straight answer: does the council intend to keep an in-house Passenger Assistant service or doesn’t it?”

Workers’ terms and conditions unknown

UNISON does not know what pay, sick pay, pension provision or continuity protections apply to the 61 commissioned Passenger Assistants currently working on regular routes. At the JNCG on 15 June, management confirmed they could not say what sick pay arrangements applied to commissioned workers.

For Passenger Assistants working daily with children who have complex health conditions and, in some cases, compromised immune systems, that is a direct health and safety concern. Workers without occupational sick pay are more likely to come in when unwell.

UNISON has also raised serious questions about health and safety incident reporting. Three separate reporting channels exist across the split management structure — none of them currently provides a complete picture of incidents involving Passenger Escorts on PTS routes. Management acknowledged at the JNCG that near misses are likely under-reported.

The Trade Union Engagement Framework, signed by the Chief Executive in December 2024, commits the council to sharing information with trade unions on service reviews and outsourcing matters, consulting on decisions affecting staffing, and giving serious consideration to keeping services in-house. UNISON has identified seven specific provisions that have not been honoured in this case. None of them were disputed at the JNCG.

A conflict of interest at the heart of the service

UNISON has also raised a structural concern about BELS’s role in the service. BELS simultaneously decides which routes are needed, manages contracts with external Passenger Assistant providers, and line-manages the directly employed LBB Passenger Assistants whose work the external contracts are displacing. UNISON has asked whether that arrangement has ever been subject to a formal governance review.

John Burgess added: “These are some of Barnet’s most vulnerable children. They build relationships with their Passenger Escorts over years. The council cannot say these workers are part of a commissioned model and then refuse to account for the employment standards that apply to them. We don’t know if they’re being paid the London Living Wage. We don’t know if they have sick pay. We don’t know what happens to a child’s regular escort if that worker isn’t available. That is not good enough.”

UNISON has set a 20-working day deadline for written responses. If those responses are not received, UNISON has indicated it will treat the matter as a formal failure to agree and will pursue the available routes.

NOTES TO EDITORS

Barnet UNISON represents approximately 3,000 members across the London Borough of Barnet, including employees of the council itself, its local authority trading companies (The Barnet Group and Barnet Education and Learning Services), schools, FE colleges, care services, environmental services, depots, and a range of contractors and outsourced providers.

The Passenger Transport Service provides school transport for children with special educational needs across 133 routes in Barnet.

The Trade Union Engagement Framework was signed by the Chief Executive of London Borough of Barnet in December 2024.

UNISON is separately pursuing an equal pay claim on behalf of more than 700 members against LBB, The Barnet Group, and BELS, with a preliminary Employment Tribunal hearing listed for September 2026.

Contact: Barnet UNISON — contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

 

Are you paying the right UNISON subscription?

Local, National, News

Are you paying the right UNISON subscription?

One of the most common — and most easily fixed — membership problems we see is members paying the wrong subscription rate. With more people now joining online directly rather than through their employer’s payroll, your subscription doesn’t automatically go up when your pay does. That means many members are unknowingly undersubscribed.

This matters. UNISON’s rules are clear: your subscription must reflect what you actually earn. If it doesn’t, it can affect your access to representation and legal support when you need it most. That’s not a risk worth taking.

How subscriptions work

Your UNISON subscription is based on your annual salary. It’s calculated as a percentage of your earnings, so the more you earn, the more you pay — but the rates are genuinely affordable. Here’s what you should currently be paying:

Annual salary Monthly subscription
Up to £2,000 £1.30
£2,001 – £5,000 £3.50
£5,001 – £8,000 £5.30
£8,001 – £11,000 £6.60
£11,001 – £14,000 £7.85
£14,001 – £17,000 £9.70
£17,001 – £20,000 £11.50
£20,001 – £25,000 £14.00
£25,001 – £30,000 £17.25
£30,001 – £35,000 £20.30
Over £35,000 £22.50

Students and qualifying apprentices pay just £10 a year. Northern Ireland members have slightly different rates — contact the branch if that applies to you.

You can also claim tax relief on 70% of your subscription, which reduces the real cost further.

Check your subscription now

If you’ve had a pay rise — even a small one — check whether you’ve moved into a higher band. If you joined online and pay by direct debit, your rate won’t update automatically. You need to do it yourself.

You can update your details through My UNISON at unison.org.uk/my-unison or contact us at the branch and we’ll help you sort it.

Why it matters

UNISON’s support — whether that’s representation in a disciplinary, backing for a grievance, legal advice, or the equal pay work we’re doing right now — is only available to members who are in good standing. Paying the correct subscription is the foundation of that. It’s also how we fund the work: campaigns, organising, negotiations, and casework all depend on members being properly subscribed.

If you’re not sure what you’re paying or whether it’s right, get in touch. It takes five minutes to check and fix.

Contact Barnet UNISON: 0208 359 2088 or email contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

 

 

UNISON Members in The Barnet Group Vote Yes

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Barnet Homes staff voted 100% and Your Choice Barnet staff voted 97% to move towards an industrial ballot to achieve their aim of having Council terms and conditions restored.

The turnouts mean that they would have confidently beaten the thresholds required by the anti-trade union laws. No longer are these workers prepared to carry out 1st class Council services on 2nd class pay.

The only reason for the existence of Local Authority Trading Companies is for Councils to sidestep Council terms and conditions. They often cite the cost of the pension scheme to the employer. Yet it is senior managers who cost the most in the pension scheme and so we wonder “if it is such a good idea and so good for the Council then instead of forcing the lowest paid into even more inferior terms and conditions, why don’t senior managers lead by example and create one for themselves?”

Barnet UNISON has requested a Special JNCC to impress on The Barnet Group the need to negotiate movement on the demands from the workforce.

This news comes at a time when the Tribunal has ruled that the Equal Pay Claim against The Barnet Group and BELS can proceed to be heard.

We will feedback when we have more developments.

Holiday Pay — Member Update

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Cost of Living Crisis, Local, UNISON Campaign

Holiday Pay — Member Update

What is this about?

For many years, the Council calculated holiday pay based on basic pay only. If you regularly worked overtime — whether that was extra shifts, weekend working, Bank Holiday rotas or other regular additional hours — that overtime was left out of your holiday pay calculation. That meant when you took a week’s leave, you were paid less than you would have earned in a normal working week.

This was wrong in law. A series of Employment Tribunal rulings — most significantly from 2014 onwards — established clearly that regular overtime must be included in holiday pay. If overtime is a regular and normal part of your working pattern, your holiday pay should reflect your normal earnings, not just your basic rate.

The Council should have corrected this from 2014. It did not do so for a significant number of workers. Barnet UNISON has been pursuing this on behalf of members and the Council has now accepted in writing that regular overtime should be included in holiday pay calculations.

Who is affected?

The workers we know are most directly affected are depot staff in Waste, Recycling, Green Waste and Street Scene. But this issue is not limited to depot workers. Any LBB employee who regularly works overtime as a normal part of their job could be affected — including staff in social services, children’s homes, libraries and other services. We have asked the Council to provide data on all affected workers across the workforce, and we are still waiting for that information.

If you regularly work overtime and have done so for a number of years, you may have a personal interest in this claim.

Where are we now?

Barnet UNISON has been in formal negotiations with the Council through the Joint Negotiating and Consultative Group. Those negotiations are now moving towards a conclusion. We expect to be in a position to consult members on a proposed offer before the summer.

When we have a formal proposal from the Council — setting out who is covered, how far back it goes, and how the figures have been calculated — we will share the full details with affected members and seek your views before anything is agreed.

We are not there yet, but we are close. Watch this space.

If you have any questions in the meantime, contact the branch at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk

End.

 

School Meals Workers — UNISON Needs to Hear From You

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Consultation, Insourcing, Local, London Living Wage, News, Schools, Solidarity, UNISON Campaign

June 2026

If you work for ISS Catering in a Barnet school, please read this.

The council’s contract with ISS is coming to an end in March 2027. That does not necessarily mean your job ends — it may mean a change of employer, or it may mean staying with ISS under a new arrangement — but there will be changes, and UNISON needs to be on top of this from the start to protect your rights.

I have already been into meetings with Barnet Council management about what this means for catering staff and I will be going back in. I am pushing hard on the things that matter most — your pay, your London Living Wage, your pension, and making sure any transfer is handled properly and fairly. I am also making the case directly to the council and to elected councillors that bringing this service back in-house — so that you become council employees again — is the right thing to do. That fight is ongoing.

But I need to hear from you.

Our membership records are not always up to date, and things may have changed since many of you moved from the council to ISS back in 2016. I cannot represent you properly without knowing your current situation.

Please get in touch and let me know:

  • What job you are currently doing and which school you are based at
  • Whether your terms and conditions have changed since you moved to ISS — for example your pay, your hours, your holiday entitlement
  • Whether you are still in the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) or whether your pension arrangements have changed
  • Whether your contact details or home address have changed
  • Whether you have any concerns or issues you want me to know about

Everything you tell me is treated in confidence. It comes to me directly and stays with me — I am not passing anything to ISS or to the council.

I know many of you will have questions I cannot fully answer yet. Things are still being worked out and I would rather be honest with you than give you information that turns out to be wrong. What I can tell you is that UNISON is in the room, I am attending every meeting, and your rights under TUPE mean your core terms and conditions are legally protected through any transfer.

Even if you have no concerns right now, please still get in touch with your current role and contact details. Every reply strengthens our position.

Contact Barnet UNISON directly: 📧 contactus@barnetunison.org.uk 📞 020 8359 2088

Not yet a UNISON member?

If a colleague has shared this with you and you are not yet in UNISON, now is exactly the right time to join. You can sign up at unison.org.uk/join or contact John directly and he will help you join over the phone.

End.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | June 2026 BARNET UNISON’S EQUAL PAY FIGHT: WE ARE NOT GOING AWAY

Anti - Racism, Austerity, Barnet Group, Barnet Homes, Cost of Living Crisis, Equal Pay, Housing, Local, National, Schools, Solidarity, TBG Flex, UNISON Campaign, Your Choice Barnet

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | June 2026

BARNET UNISON’S EQUAL PAY FIGHT: WE ARE NOT GOING AWAY

Hundreds of Barnet women workers are owed years of back pay. UNISON is fighting for every one of them and the bill for Barnet Council is growing every single day.

On 29 May 2026, Barnet UNISON took its equal pay claim to the Employment Tribunal. UNISON’s solicitors made the case for hundreds of women workers — school staff, care workers, early years workers, administrators and support staff — who have for years been paid less than their male counterparts in the council’s waste and recycling service.

Here is what we know. Male workers in the waste and recycling service are paid for a full working day but are allowed to go home when their rounds are done, sometimes by mid-morning. Women doing work of equal value have no such benefit. They work every contracted hour every day. That is not fair. That is unequal and illegal. And UNISON is determined to put it right.

WHAT HAPPENED AT THE TRIBUNAL

Our barrister succeeded in getting UNISON’s case heard, despite attempts by Barnet Council  to block our submissions. UNISON was fighting for women workers in that courtroom, making the case to get our members’ voices heard.

The judge has set a preliminary hearing for 9 September 2026 to consider UNISON’s application to have the procedural block on our claim removed.

That hearing is the next critical moment. We will be ready.

Separately, the tribunal confirmed that UNISON’s claims against The Barnet Group and Barnet Education and Learning Skills — the council’s own companies, employing many of our members — are not subject to any block and are being progressed. Those claims move forward now.

OUR CLAIM IS STRONG AND GROWING

Barnet UNISON’s case is not built on speculation. It is built on evidence — evidence that has been gathered carefully, systematically, and with the support of experienced legal specialists in equal pay law.

Here is what we know about the situation at Barnet:

  • Waste and recycling workers are regularly finishing their rounds hours before their contracted day ends and going home, paid in full.
  • Women working in schools, care, early years, social services and admin must complete every contracted hour. There is no equivalent benefit for them.
  • The council knows this practice exists. Rather than negotiating an end to this practice as other Councils have done, they are refusing to sit and meet with UNISON.
  • Other councils — including Southampton, Birmingham and Glasgow — have already settled equal pay claims on the same basis, paying out millions of pounds to women workers.
  • The longer Barnet Council refuses to come to the table, the bigger the bill becomes. Every single month of delay adds to the compensation owed.


“This claim is about basic fairness. Women working for Barnet Council and its companies have been short-changed for years while the council looked the other way. We have the evidence, we have the legal backing, and we have the determination to see this through. Barnet Council cannot run from this. The question is not whether they will have to pay — it is how much.”


Helen Davies, Branch Chair, Barnet UNISON and UNISON London Regional SGE Representative




EVERY MONTH OF DELAY COSTS BARNET COUNCIL MORE


Barnet Council’s legal strategy appears to be delay procedural hearings; blocking applications; running down the clock. What they do not seem to understand, or perhaps do not care about, is that delay does not reduce their liability; it increases it.


Equal pay back pay accrues from the date a claim is lodged. UNISON’s claims were lodged in November and December 2025. That clock is running. Every month the council refuses to negotiate, every month they hide behind procedural manoeuvres, the total compensation bill grows. By the time this case reaches settlement or judgment, Barnet Council will be paying for every single month they delayed.


That cost is ultimately borne by Barnet taxpayers. UNISON is not responsible for that. The council is.


THIS IS YOUR CLAIM. YOUR TIME IS NOW.


UNISON has lodged claims on behalf of our members. But the strength of this campaign depends on numbers and numbers depend on you.


Every eligible UNISON member who completes a case form adds to the pressure on Barnet Council to stop stalling and sit down at the negotiating table. A large, organised, well-evidenced claim is harder to ignore and harder to fight than a small one. Barnet Council is already watching these numbers. Help us make them impossible to ignore.


Here is what you must understand about timing: your back pay runs from the date you join the claim, not from the date UNISON first raised the issue. Every month you wait is a month of potential compensation you may never recover. Do not assume someone else has done it for you. Do not assume you will be included automatically.


COMPLETE YOUR CASE FORM TODAY


Contact Barnet UNISON at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk to get your case form. Fill it in. Return it. Do it now.


If you are a UNISON member working for the London Borough of Barnet, The Barnet Group or Barnet Education and Learning Skills, and you believe you may have been affected by unequal pay, you may be eligible to join this claim. Speak to your UNISON rep or contact the branch directly.


UNISON STANDS FULLY BEHIND YOU


UNISON knows what the cost-of-living crisis means for our members. We see it every day. Workers who give everything to their jobs — caring for children, supporting families, keeping this borough running — are struggling to pay their bills, heat their homes and put food on the table. Many of Barnet UNISON’s members are among the lowest paid workers in the borough. They cannot afford to wait years for justice that should have been delivered years ago.


That is why this claim matters beyond its legal significance. The back pay owed to these workers is not a windfall. It is money they earned and were denied. It is money that would make a real difference to real lives, right now, when it is needed most.




“Barnet UNISON’s equal pay claim is exactly the kind of fight that UNISON exists to lead. These are women who have worked hard, served their community, and been systematically short-changed. UNISON’s London region stands fully behind Barnet branch and every member in this claim. We will not rest until justice is delivered.”


Sara Gorton Regional Secretary UNISON Greater London Region




“Equal pay is not a negotiating position. It is a legal right. The women of Barnet have waited long enough. UNISON is unequivocally, unconditionally and completely behind Barnet UNISON’s members and their branch in this fight. Barnet Council must stop hiding behind legal delays and do the right thing: come to the table, negotiate a fair settlement, and end this inequality now.”


Andrea Egan, UNISON General Secretary




ENDS


For further information contact Barnet UNISON Branch: contactus@barnetunison.org.uk


 


NOTES TO EDITORS


    

  1. Barnet UNISON is the UNISON branch for workers employed by the London Borough of Barnet, The Barnet Group and Barnet Education and Learning Skills.
    2. 

  2. Equal pay claims are brought under the Equality Act 2010. Back pay in Employment Tribunal equal pay claims in England and Wales runs for up to six years from the date the claim is lodged.
    3. 

  3. UNISON’s equal pay claims were lodged with the Employment Tribunal in November and December 2025.
    4. 

  4. A preliminary hearing is listed for 9 September 2026 to consider UNISON’s application to lift the procedural stay on claims against the London Borough of Barnet.
    5. 

  5. Claims against The Barnet Group and Barnet Education and Learning Skills are not subject to the stay and are being actively progressed.
    6. 

  6. Comparable equal pay settlements involving task and finish in waste and recycling services have been reached at Southampton City Council (July 2025), Birmingham City Council (2024–25) and Glasgow City Council (2022).
    7. 


			

		

		
		


	
		
	

		
		
CAPITA CONTRACT ENDING — WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
		
		
 
	
		Austerity, Insourcing, Local, News, Solidarity, UNISON Campaign	



	
		

			
		
					

			


CAPITA CONTRACT ENDING — WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW


I want to let you know that the Capita contract with the London Borough of Barnet is coming to an end. New providers will be taking over a range of services from 1 October 2026.


I am currently in discussions with LBB management about what this means in practice — for services, for staffing, and for you as UNISON members. I will update you as things become clearer, but I didn’t want to wait until everything was finalised before making contact.


WHAT IS TUPE AND DOES IT APPLY TO ME?


The process that will apply to most of you is called TUPE — Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment Regulations). In plain terms, this is the legal framework that is supposed to protect your job and your terms and conditions when a service changes hands. I will be involved in that process on your behalf.


But I can only do that job properly if I know who you are, what you’re doing, and what your current situation is.


I NEED TO HEAR FROM YOU DIRECTLY


Here’s the problem — our records may not be up to date. Some of you will have changed roles, moved to a different service area, or had changes to your terms and conditions since you left LBB. We may not have your current contact details.


If I’m going into bat for members in a TUPE process, I need accurate information, not outdated records.


Please email me directly at contactus@barnetunison.org.uk and let me know:


    

  • What is your current job title?
    
• Which service area are you working in (e.g. Customer Services, Revenues and Benefits, IT, Payroll)?
    
• Have your terms and conditions changed since you were with LBB — pay, leave, sick pay, anything?
    
• Are you still in the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)?
    
• Have you moved address, or have your personal contact details changed?
    
• Do you have any concerns or issues you want to flag to me now?
    • 



Please don’t assume someone else will pick this up. I need to hear from you individually.


IF YOU ARE WORRIED — CONTACT ME NOW


If there are things already worrying you — about your job, your pension, what happens next — tell me now. This is exactly the time to raise it, not after transfer letters have landed.


I will be in touch again as things develop. In the meantime, my door is open.


You can contact me at: Email: contactus@barnetunison.org.uk


In solidarity,


John

Branch Secretary, Barnet UNISON


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

			

		

		
		


	
		
	

		
		
CLIVE LEWIS MP BACKS BARNET’S CLEANERS IN FIGHT AGAINST NORFOLK-OWNED CONTRACTOR
		
		
 
	
		Anti - Racism, Austerity, Insourcing, Local, London Living Wage, News, Solidarity, UNISON Campaign	



	
		

			
		
					

			


Norwich South MP writes to Norfolk County Council demanding action over Norse Group’s 12-day pay lag


Barnet UNISON has welcomed the intervention of Clive Lewis MP, Member of Parliament for Norwich South, who has written to Norfolk County Council demanding it use its ownership powers to force Norse Group to pay its lowest-paid workers on time.


Read letter to Leader of Norfolk Council RE Norse Group Clive Lewis MP


https://www.barnetunison.me.uk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/26-06-04-Letter-to-Leader-of-Norfolk-Council-RE-Norse-Group-Clive-Lewis-MP.pdf


Norse Group — the largest Local Authority Trading Company in the country, wholly owned by Norfolk County Council — operates the cleaning contract for the London Borough of Barnet. The company imposes a pay arrangement that forces cleaners to wait 12 days after completing every four-week working period before receiving their wages. Norse’s own pay schedule confirms the 12-day gap applies to every single pay period throughout the year without exception.


These are London Living Wage workers in one of the most expensive cities in the world. At any given moment, Norse holds approximately six weeks’ worth of earned wages belonging to its lowest-paid staff.


Clive Lewis MP wrote to the Leader of Norfolk County Council stating:


“The lowest-paid workers on the contract are subsidising Norse’s payroll operation with 12 days of their earned wages per period. That is not an ethical business model, and it is not consistent with the values that a publicly owned company ought to embody.”


His letter directly challenges Norse’s claim that the arrangement is required for HMRC compliance, calling it a commercial and administrative choice rather than a legal requirement, and rejects the company’s suggestion that workers should take credit union loans to bridge the gap as “an indictment of the arrangement.”


Helen Davies, Branch Chair of Barnet UNISON & UNISON SGE rep for London Region, said:


“We are grateful to Clive Lewis for acting quickly and decisively. He has gone straight to the heart of the matter — Norse is owned by Norfolk County Council, and the Council cannot wash its hands of responsibility for how this company treats its workers. Norfolk created Norse, Norfolk owns Norse, and Norfolk receives an annual dividend from Norse. The workers making that dividend possible deserve to be paid on time.


“We now call on Norfolk County Council to respond without delay and direct Norse to change this arrangement — not just for our members in Barnet, but for all 1,725 Norse employees across the country subject to the same pay lag.”


Barnet UNISON has also written to all 31 Barnet Labour Councillors, the four Barnet Labour MPs, and Green Councillor Charli Thompson calling for urgent intervention and a commitment to bring the cleaning contract back in-house when it expires in 2027.


The Barnet UNISON petition calling on Norse to pay workers on time and for the cleaning service to be insourced in 2027 remains open.


✅ Sign the petition: https://www.megaphone.org.uk/petitions/pay-barnet-s-cleaners-on-time-and-bring-cleaning-back-in-house?source=rawlink&utm_source=rawlink&share=67ca7052-c387-43a8-bd8f-201c05771705


ENDS


For media enquiries contact: Barnet UNISON contactus@barnetunison.org.uk


 


 

			

		

		
		


	

			  

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