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United Voices of the Word (UVW) was founded in January 2014 by a group of cleaners from Latin America, working with a few volunteers from street corners and cafes for the first three years. Since then, we have welcomed over 10,000 workers into our union from over 100 countries. Through strikes, occupations, blockades and campaigns they have won tens of millions of pounds in improved pay and benefits for the UK’s invisible army of low-paid workers. Our members no longer feel invisible and those that have taken collective action now have some of the best terms and conditions in the country.
We are a community and a trade union of low-paid, migrant, marginalised and under-represented workers. We fight the bosses for dignity and respect through direct and legal action!
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Cleaners at the V&A, mostly Latin American migrants who are UVW members, earn just £11.75 an hour - pennies above minimum wage - and have no company sick pay. They work tirelessly to keep the museum spotless, yet they are treated like third-class workers. They are fighting back.
After enduring relentless overwork due to crippling staff cuts from a cost-cutting contractor, the outsourced night cleaners at Schroders, a bank with billions in assets, are demanding proper staffing and timely wages.
Workers at West End Quay luxury apartments are taking a stand once again! After winning a major pay rise and union recognition through strike action in 2023, UVW concierge and cleaners are ready to strike again, this time against bosses undermining their collective bargaining agreement.
Outsourced security guards at the Natural History, Science, and Victoria and Albert (V&A) museums protect millions of visitors each year and deserve a fair pay rise. Faced with ongoing unfair treatment, they were forced to take historic and unprecedented strike action—the longest in the history of all three institutions.
25.03.2025 / UVW TV / Justice for Cleaners / Natural History, Science and V&A Museums
17.03.2025 / UVW TV / Justice for Cleaners
VICTORY 💥 2025
Staff at Solace Women’s Aid voted unanimously to take indefinite strike action against devastating cuts that will rip vital domestic abuse support from one of London’s most vulnerable communities. They need your support to protect these life-saving services.
VICTORY 💥 2024
UVW members who clean Harrods through the night are fighting back against a new unfair leave policy that severely restricts their ability to take time off to visit their families abroad.
VICTORY 💥 2024
Outsourced migrant cleaners have had their hours cut and pay unlawfully slashed by a whopping 12% at the Times’ Independent Secondary School of the Year 2024
VICTORY 💥 2024
The cleaners at the Department for Education (DfE) are being treated like second class workers by the government and its contractors and they won’t put up with it.
VICTORY 💥 2023
Cleaners at a private school in South London won an inflation busting 15% pay rise, full pay sick pay and improved working conditions after workers returned a unanimous vote to strike.
VICTORY 💥 2023
Migrant cleaners working at the Mercedes-Benz showroom in Colindale say no to poverty wages.
VICTORY 💥 2023
The outsourced cleaning and concierge workers at the luxury flats complex of West End Quays in central London refuse to accept the long-term unfair real terms pay cut and inadequate working conditions.
VICTORY 💥 2023
The cleaners at the prestigious London School of Economics (LSE) are being denied holiday pay that mirrors their normal salary.
VICTORY 💥 2023
The cleaners at Streatham & Clapham High School (SCHS), an exclusive private school in South London say "BASTA YA" to being treated as second class workers.
VICTORY 💥 2022
Cleaners at Latchmere Leisure Centre in Battersea are demanding a living wage, an occupational sick pay scheme and trade union recognition.
VICTORY 💥 2022
The cleaners at Riverside Quarter, a large luxury residence in Wandsworth, London, are demanding a dignified pay rate and better terms and conditions.
VICTORY 💥 2021
Restaurant workers at Harrods, London’s emblematic luxury department store, have won a huge pay rise of almost 25% for hundreds of waiting and kitchen staff. The win is one of the most significant in the history of hospitality in the UK and establishes a new benchmark for pay in the sector.
VICTORY 💥 2021
Having already won a string of concessions, such as NHS pay, sick pay, pensions last year in an historic fight to end outsourcing, workers then found out that GOSH had failed to give them full NHS parity. The workers voted to take strike action and NHS bosses conceded to their demands for full NHS workers’ rights.
VICTORY 💥 2021
UVW members, care, domestic and maintenance workers at Sage Nursing home in North London declared a huge victory after a protracted dispute over poverty pay and decent working conditions. Winning the London Living Wage, resulting in a minimum pay rise of 11% for some workers and all other staff a rise of 5%.
VICTORY 💥 2020
Cleaners at La Retraite Roman Catholic Girls’ School won full pay sick pay, a 24% wage increase, improvements to health and safety and much more in what was set to be the longest school cleaners strike in UK history!
VICTORY 💥 2020
Hundreds of BAME and migrant cleaners at this world-renowned children's hospital fought back against racial discrimination and an end to outsourcing... And won! GOSH agreed to the workers' demands in December 2020!
VICTORY 💥 2020
Cleaners who are mainly from Latin America and work at Ark Globe Academy in South London had their wages stolen and were bribed with PPE in exchange for leaving UVW. But they overcame the odds with direct action to win a stunning victory!
VICTORY 💥 2019
With their glitzy flagship store located in the heart of New Bond Street and surrounded by other big name brands, Chanel thought it could get away with paying its cleaners poverty wages and leaving them understaffed and victimising a workplace organiser, but oh how wrong they were!
VICTORY 💥 2019
Literally worked to the point of collapse and exhaustion, these outsourced University of Greenwich café workers decided enough was enough and that action was in order. They demanded full pay sick pay and an end to poverty wages and unfair workloads. After taking several days of bold strike and direct action which saw them disrupt a graduation ceremony, they won!
VICTORY 💥 2019
They may be entrusted with the upkeep of the Queen’s parks and iconic London landmarks, but the way these workers have been treated by French contractor VINCI Facilities is less than royal. So they went on strike!
VICTORY 💥 2019
In a historic and groundbreaking victory, 200 cleaners, caterers, and porters, all BAME and migrant workers and outsourced to French multinational Sodexo, took on Imperial College Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and demanded to be made direct employees of the NHS and won!
VICTORY 💥 2018
In 2018, cleaners at Kensington and Chelsea Council, the UK’s wealthiest local authority, went on strike to demand the London Living Wage, full pay sick pay and an end to their poverty wages of £7.83. Through strike action, storming a council meeting, and forcing management to negotiate on the picket line, they soon won!
VICTORY 💥 2018
This group of Peruvian workers at an Orion Recycling facility in East London were underpaid, mistreated, and had their health put in danger by a negligent and callous manager. Denied full pay sick pay and deprived of on-site showers and basic necessities, these workers finally decided enough was enough and took matters into their own hands.
VICTORY 💥 2018
Renowned for its racist and xenophobic headlines, the Daily Mail’s contempt for migrants also extended to the cleaners in its own offices who were outsourced onto poverty wages of £7.50 an hour. But when the cleaners fought back the story took a turn that this Murdoch owned paper wasn’t expecting!
VICTORY 💥 2017
In a David vs Goliath battle, UVW members Freddy and Angelica, a married couple from Ecuador, took on luxury sports car dealer HR Owen and beat the odds; overcoming intimidation, unlawful dismissal, and winning the London Living Wage.
VICTORY 💥 2017
In a dispute and victory which was the first of its kind, outsourced cleaners at the London School of Economics, all of whom were BAME and primarily migrants, fought back against institutional racism and demanded to be made direct employees of the university. In what was then the biggest cleaners strike in UK history, these heroes became the first group of workers to force a British university to end the practice of outsourcing cleaners!
VICTORY 💥 2016
Owned by Amancio Ortega, the richest man in Europe, and located in the heart of the City of London, and home to financial giants JP Morgan and Schroders, 100 Wood Street did not know what had hit it when UVW members embarked on the longest strike in the history of the City of London.
VICTORY 💥 2016
Topshop, part of the Arcadia Group owned by tax cheat Sir Phillip Green, had outsourced its cleaners onto poverty wages and the lowest terms and conditions legally possible. But when the cleaners began to fightback, management got a lot more than it bargained for.
VICTORY 💥 2016
Only a minority of the generous tips left for chefs and waiters in the luxury restaurants of Harrods emporium were going to staff. But the workers weren't going to accept their money being stolen without a fight!
VICTORY 💥 2015
In the heart of well-heeled Mayfair, Sotheby’s management thought they could pull a fast one on UVW members by rowing back on commitments to the London Living Wage, reinstatements, and fair workloads. But after several weeks of demonstrations and protests the workers walked away with the London Living Wage and full pay sick pay!
VICTORY 💥 2015
UVW members at The Barbican Centre were paid poverty wages, but fought back and won not only the London Living Wage for themselves, but the entirety of the outsourced facilities staff contracted by the Barbican’s owner, the City of London.
Our members no longer feel invisible and those that have taken collective action now have some of the best terms and conditions in the country.
Are you ready to fight for equality, dignity and respect in your workplace? Wherever you work, if you have a battle to win, join UVW and let’s continue to make history!
Learn hands-on union organising skills with United Voices of the World (UVW) at the Emanuel Gomes Organising School. Apply now!
Come and join UVW, a radical, member-led general workers union that supports some of the most exploited and marginalised workers in the UK.
YOUR UNION, YOUR VOICE, YOUR UVW
YOUR UNION, YOUR VOICE, YOUR UVW
Are you ready to fight for equality, dignity and respect in your workplace? Wherever you work, if you have a battle to win, join UVW and let’s continue to make history!
Each sector of UVW is experiencing the effects of Coronavirus differently, you can read their individual statements here:
Use your voice - UVW members decide how we grow and move forward!
We are building a workers' mass movement: Join us!
Hundreds of UVW members who work across Harrods’ retail, restaurant, kitchen and cleaning departments are fighting for Christmas bonuses, fair wages and working conditions.
After years of relentless overwork and staff shortages under a series of cleaning contractors, the cleaners at Battersea Power Station are demanding change!
Ronny, a delivery driver for Susi Chef, was denied holiday pay and fired without receiving his final salary. Now, he's taking his former employers to county court, demanding justice and fair treatment for all workers.
Aoua was summarily sacked after over 18 months on the job by her bosses at Cleanology for "cleaning standards" and bogus claims of unauthorised absences, without any notice, process, hearing or right of appeal. We think she was discriminated against because of her race.
Total Clean summarily sacked Gabriela, a cleaner and single mother from Peru, just before Christmas 2023, for eating a left-over tuna sandwich from a lawyers meeting at a top city law firm. Her bosses called it ‘theft”. UVW’s #tunagate solidarity protest at Devonshires Solicitors unleashed a media storm and caught the world's attention.
The Dorchester sacked Teresa, a cloakroom attendant for failing to replenish a soap dispenser and pick up carpet fluff with a lint roll. The hotel said they dismissed her due to the seriousness of the alleged offences. UVW union believes leniency is seldom afforded to Black, brown or migrant workers, with the threat of dismissal constantly hanging over them.
Spanish Amazon Delivery drivers victims of a migrant workers scam take bosses to court
Cleaners at the elite Hurlingham Club took on workplace racism and won their dispute through collective action.
Cleaners, carers and concierge from nine different workplaces strike together for better pay, working conditions and respect at work!!
Latin American workers that clean the warehouses of billionaire global giant Amazon in Dartford say no to poverty pay.
Cleaners at La Retraite Roman Catholic Girls’ School want changes to their working hours scrapped
Night shift workers that clean the offices of global media powerhouse Ogilvy in the historic Sea Containers building on the Southbank are striking for fair pay and full pay sick pay.
Care workers, domestic and maintenance staff at Sage Nursing home in North London are calling for an improved sick pay scheme, a pay rise that reflects inflation, and enhancement for weekend and night shift work.
UVW cleaners at the Adelphi Building won a living wage in 2020 and a second pay rise in 2023 through repeated disputes with contractor JPC by Samsic.
Workers at refugee and migrant support charity, ASIRT, in Birmingham are fighting to save their jobs and a much needed service after trustees decided to close the charity down, after a request for trade union recognition was denied.
UVW balloted architects at Atomik Studio, marking one of the first steps towards industrial action in the UK architecture sector.
Bar staff at St James Tavern in Brighton are demanding better pay and conditions, job security and respect at work. They are on low-wage, irregular contracts and have no full pay sick pay.
Security guards at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) are denied the same annual leave, sick leave, and career progression as other NHS workers.
Staff at Solace Women’s Aid came together to file a collective complaint about institutional racism, leading to the CEO’s departure.
Cleaners at the headquarters of Channel 4 and ITV are forced to come into work when sick because their employer refuses to give them full pay sick pay. But they won’t give up until they win their fight for sick pay and equality and respect in the workplace.
Outsourced onto levels of pay and terms and conditions which fall far below those enjoyed by their largely white and in-housed colleagues, these security guards at St. George’s, University of London, are refusing to take racial discrimination lying down.
Paid poverty wages, given gruelling workloads, denied full pay sick pay, and abandoned and ignored in the middle of a deadly pandemic, these cleaners have refused to be beaten. They are fighting to be made direct employees of the Ministry of Justice.
UVW supported Percy through a determined campaign at KCL after he was unfairly dismissed for refusing to attend a face-to-face disciplinary meeting during lockdown. The college refused to offer a remote alternative, putting health at risk. The union stood by him to demand fair treatment and accountability.
UVW balloted HCA hospital cleaners across London and won a major pay rise without the need for strike action.
Cleaners at John Lewis staged bold demonstrations and occupations to demand fair treatment and living wages.
Cleaners at Withers LLP secured UVW’s first-ever dispute win, setting the stage for a decade of grassroots organising.
We are a community and a trade union of low-paid, migrant, marginalised and under-represented workers. We fight the bosses for dignity and respect through direct and legal action!
UVW fights for security guards to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
UVW fights for retail workers to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
UVW fights for hospitality workers to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
UVW fights for cleaners to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
UVW fights for care workers to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
UVW fights for childcare workers to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
UVW fights for charity workers to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
UVW's founding members bravely fight for dignity, equality and respect!
UVW fights for architectural workers to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
Cultural work *is* work! Our Designers + Cultural Workers Sector is organising workers across the creative industries.
UVW fights for sex workers to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
UVW fights for legal workers to get fair wages, sick pay and dignity at work. Join UVW today.
144 Cambridge Heath Road
London E1 5QJ
07884 553443 (English)
07775 697605 (Español)
info@uvwunion.org.uk
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