09.10.2024 / Press releases / Natural History, Science and V&A Museums

Security guards at the Natural History and Science museums vote overwhelmingly to strike!

• Outsourced security guards at the Natural History and Science museums, who are members of United Voices of the World (UVW) union, have unanimously voted to strike with 96% in favour out of a 95% turnout, in a fight for better pay and conditions.
  
• The guards, who are outsourced to Wilson James, a contractor that made £7 million in profit after tax last year, have had real terms pay cuts for years and now have wages “stuck in the past”.
  
• The security guards are demanding a pay rise, improvements to their current sick pay scheme and increased annual and compassionate leave. The museums make millions in profit every year.

Outsourced security guards at the Natural History and Science Museums, who protect millions of visitors annually, have overwhelmingly voted to strike, with 96% of the 95% turnout supporting the action. 

The security guards are demanding a proper pay rise, having only been offered an insulting rise to £13.15 an hour after years of real terms pay cuts. The security guards had been earning £11.95 per hour until this month, only 51p above the minimum wage, which was the London Living Wage in 2022. The guards describe the increase as “too little, too late” as the last increase was substantially below inflation.

The guards are demanding £16 an hour, full sick pay from day one and one more week of annual leave. Their employer, Wilson James, who makes over £7 million in profit after tax, refuses to negotiate with UVW.

Sempijja Juma, Science Museum security guard and UVW member said:

“We are asking for pains to be recognised, the mental and physical pains we go through on a daily basis. We are out, standing and patrolling, in the freezing cold for hours at a time, on the door and in the car park. Our work takes us away from our families, we work long hours, sometimes until midnight or 2am, because we cannot afford life in the UK, inflation is high and transport costs are high, we have children and families to look after. Some of us have health issues we can’t talk about, but we persist.  We’re going through all this pain but we don’t show it. Yet the Museum looks at us as second-class citizens, directly employed staff get frequent breaks but we don’t. We do our best for the millions of people that come through the doors and all the high-profile events with politicians, billionaires, celebrities, and royalty that we look after. We’ve tried sending letters, we tried to speak to Human Resource, but every time we got ignored. Now they’re trying to pay us the London Living Wage, but this is not enough. We’re asking for fair and better pay for our services, we cannot be given pennies to keep quiet. Most officers have been at the museum for a long time, some over 20-30 years. We know we must strike to make changes.”

Catherine Campbell, Science Museum security guard of 13 years and UVW member, said:

“This 90% yes vote is about us having our say and proving to management that we are not happy about our conditions and that we are serious, we want change. Every day we deal with a great deal of responsibility, giving the visitors a good experience and thinking about their safety and security. This is a tough job, during half term we expect between 14,000-15,000 people in a day. We deal with at least 7 first aid situations a day, anything from strokes to fainting, we must be ready for anything and everything. The officers are feeling positive going forward, we know we’ve got each other, we’ve got the support, and we are feeling powerful together. The guards at the Natural History Museum and Science Museum are no longer invisible, we want respect, we want the bosses to come and speak to us, because we deserve a seat at the table and better pay and conditions.” 

Petros Elia, general secretary for UVW, said:

“The security guards have spoken loud and clear with an overwhelming vote to strike – they deserve wages that meet today’s standards, not outdated ones, and the incredibly important and thankless work they do. These workers, many of whom are migrants, are responsible for the safety of millions of visitors and priceless artefacts, yet they’re paid some of the lowest wages in the museum. Wilson James reaps huge profits from their hard work – over £7 million after tax – but it’s high time they recognise that and pay these guards a wage that reflects their worth. The outsourcing of these roles unfairly reduced the guards to second-class workers, cutting them off from the museum’s community, pay scales, and benefits. It’s long overdue for the museums to bring them in-house. UVW will stand with the guards every step of the way in this fight for fair treatment, and we call on Wilson James and the museums to come to the table and negotiate.”

For further information contact the UVW comms team:

Isabel: 07706 987443
Cristina: 07548 759340
Jim: 07749 765264

E-mail: comms@uvwunion.org.uk  

Notes for editors

United Voices of the World is an anti-racist, member-led, direct action, campaigning trade union and we exist to support and empower the most vulnerable groups of precarious, low-paid and predominantly BAME and migrant workers in the UK. We fight the bosses through direct action on the streets and through the courts and demand that all members receive at least the London Living Wage, full pay, sick pay, dignity, equality and respect.

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