“It was not fair. It definitely didn’t feel like the NHS family they talk about.”
Ioana Paduraru, cleaning and portering supervisor and UVW member at St Helier hospital
After years of doing essential work in the NHS, some 250 cleaners, porters and catering workers at St Helier and Epsom Hospitals (part of the GEST Trust) are taking legal action against the hospitals over four years of lost pay and pension contributions, alleging indirect race discrimination. The predominantly Black, brown and migrant workers, all UVW members, were employed directly by the NHS but denied the pay, pensions and conditions of colleagues on Agenda for Change (AfC) contracts. Most strikingly, they received employer pension contributions of just 3%, compared with around 23% for their NHS colleagues, leaving them facing significant losses to their future pension entitlements and retirement security.
The workers were brought in-house by the GESH Trust in 2021 after previously working for contractor Mitie. But despite becoming NHS employees, they remained on inferior terms and were paid £13.85 an hour compared with £14.92 for NHS Band 2 colleagues. This discrepancy in pay highlights the endurance of institutional racism affecting the majority Black, brown, and migrant workers who face lower pay compared to their NHS counterparts.
In 2025, GESH acknowledged that denying the workers access to NHS pensions for four years had been unlawful and agreed to enrol them in the NHS scheme and make back payments. Yet workers were asked to pay four years of their own pension contributions upfront. This is unacceptable. These workers have already paid the price for years and should not be expected to pay again for GESH’s unlawful decision.
As Ioana Paduraru, cleaning and portering supervisor and UVW member at St Helier hospital explained to us:
“I don’t think it’s fair to ask us to pay four years of contributions upfront. With the cost of living, that’s unaffordable. I’m the only one working in my household and I have four children and I’m finding this extremely hard and stressful. That would mean paying into two pensions: NEST and then backpay the NHS pension. I don’t think that’s fair. Also, because of the decision they made at the time, I won’t have a good pension. I believe I’ve lost over £10,000.”
The workers are now fighting to get back the pay and pension contributions they say they were wrongly denied over the four years, as well as compensation for the emotional distress caused (“injury to feelings” in legal terms.)
They are being supported by law firm Leigh Day in their claim for lost pay, while their pension claim is being brought with the help of trade union UVW.
Both cases are due to be heard in 2027, with the backpay claim scheduled for 7 July and the pension claim for 14 June.