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20.07.2026 / News / Natural History, Science and V&A Museums

Science Museum security guards complete up to 30% pay restoration after two years of organising

“After two years of organising and strike action, we’re proud of what we’ve achieved together. But this isn’t the finish line.”

Catherine Campbell, Science Museum security guard

Outsourced security guards at the Science Museum have secured a new pay deal that completes a pay restoration of up to 30% after two years of sustained organising, industrial action and negotiations with United Voices of the World (UVW).

The latest agreement, reached in July 2026, raises the minimum hourly rate to £14.80, plus a 25p per hour attendance allowance, taking workers’ pay above the London Living Wage. The allowance will now be paid to all workers, ending the previous system under which only those who completed training in their own time were eligible to receive it.

The victory marks the latest chapter in a determined campaign by outsourced security guards employed by contractor Wilson James. Since joining UVW, workers have secured a series of pay victories that together have restored pay by up to 30%, reversing years of below-inflation increases and pay freezes that had left them falling behind despite protecting some of Britain’s most prestigious cultural institutions.

The campaign was built through sustained workplace organising and more than 50 days of strike action across 2024 and 2025 alongside colleagues at the Victoria and Albert Museum and Natural History Museum. Earlier this year, the Science Museum guards also balloted for further strike action.

Beyond restoring pay, the workers have also won trade union recognition demonstrating what sustained collective action can achieve in a sector where outsourced workers have too often been expected to accept low pay and insecure conditions.

For Catherine Campbell, a Science Museum security guard, the latest agreement is an important milestone, but not the end of the story.

“After two years of organising and strike action, we’re proud of what we’ve achieved together. But this isn’t the finish line. We’ll keep building our union and pushing for the pay, conditions and dignity that every worker deserves.”

The latest campaign also unfolded against the backdrop of the controversial dismissal of three Duty Security Managers at the Victoria and Albert Museum earlier this year. The workers — including a union representative and prominent strike leaders — believe they were subjected to sham redundancies because of their trade union activity following last year’s successful industrial action. Legal proceedings are ongoing.

The Science Museum victory shows how sustained workplace organising can transform pay and conditions in outsourced employment. In less than two years, workers have achieved more through collective action than they had seen over the previous decade.

For years, outsourced security guards were expected to protect institutions while their wages deteriorated. Their campaign has demonstrated that better pay and dignity at work are won when workers organise together, build their union and are prepared to take action.

While welcoming the latest agreement, the guards say they are already looking ahead. They will continue organising to improve sick pay, annual leave, overtime and enhancements for unsocial hours, alongside securing better working conditions and the respect they believe every frontline worker deserves.

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