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'Flashmop' protest over Tesco cleaners' pay
Rob Parsons21 Jun 2011
A flash mob of 150 protesters invaded a Tesco store in west London as part of a campaign to force the supermarket giant to increase cleaners' wages.
The demonstrators from Citizens UK took mops into the superstore in West Cromwell Road and sang Beatles songs during a 10-minute protest as part of its Living Wage Campaign.
They are calling on Britain's biggest supermarket chain to pressure subcontractors who supply their cleaners into paying them a "living wage" of £8.30 an hour, the minimum needed to live a decent life.
Tesco last week announced that 230,000 employees will be paid at least £7 per hour, but campaigners say the staff who clean its stores remain on poverty pay, often less than £6 an hour.
Protester Paul Regan said: "Philip Clarke [Tesco CEO] should ensure that all his cleaners get enough money to be able to put food on the table. Nobody should have to work two to three jobs to afford the simple necessities of family life."
The demonstration passed off peacefully. Tesco says it does not have control over what its cleaners are paid as they are employed by another firm.
A spokeswoman said: "Our staff receive a market-leading pay and benefits package. In London this is significantly higher than the London Living Wage. We can only speak for what we pay our people, not what others pay theirs."
Last year, a series of articles in the Standard helped hundreds of cleaners at University College London win a living wage. After initially saying the university could not afford it, UCL provost Malcolm Grant - who has a £404,000 annual pay and benefits deal - changed tack and said: "UCL will now support the London living wage of £7.85 an hour."
Reader views (24)
Funny how people accuse the cleaning companies of "creaming off 50%" and paying a slave wage. The real figure is 10-33% profit margin on contract cleaning and 72% of all the 820,000 cleaning staff in the UK are employed by small firms of 100 or less. Firms started by hard working people like me, who went without a living wage for 2 years to grow our companies and provide for our kids. £10 an hour is more than most people like Tesco will pay, so 33% of that seems fair after paying wages and insurance, corporation tax etc. The problem with union types is that they still cling onto the "work to rule" ideals of 30 years ago. If you don't like it, sod off and start a business or get an education (something 82% of cleaners have never bothered to do). If you are not qualified enough to get a good job, or brave enough to start a company up then don't moan about being broke.
- James Layton, Solihull England, 30/07/2011 13:44
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Surely if Tesco isn't paying a reasonable amount to ensure profitability and a comfortable wage for the contractor and employees, then the issue does lie with Tesco. It is all too easy to pass the blame, but it's quite clearly a domino effect. There are plenty of contractors who are more than willing to pay the Living Wage and indeed do so. When they can.
It is very easy to turn a blind eye but the fact of the matter is that Tesco is a huge brand and it is more than capable of paying a suitable sum for their cleaning contracts. I am becoming increasingly frustrated at the world's lack of appreciation for the cleaning industry and its achievements.
Next time you visit your local Tesco, or any supermarket, notice how clean it is. Notice how you wouldn't think twice about buying your fresh food from there. Now imagine a supermarket without a cleaner - it doesn't even bare thinking about. Tesco needs to get back to basics and remember "every little helps."
- Charlotte, Macclesfield, 22/06/2011 11:09
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Hate Tesco's and those stupid ads of theirs "every little helps". They have their fingers in every pie going. Pay up for all minimum wage slaves not just cleaners in London but the whole country, we all need a living wage!
- Prophet of doom, UK dustbin of Europe, 21/06/2011 19:52
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Do not like don!t shop there, simple really.
- Steve, London., 21/06/2011 17:46
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Traditionally those who participate in such demonstrations have an aversion to work themselves. How many of today's great unwashed are on benefits, I wonder?
- Gresham, Marbella, Spain, 21/06/2011 17:08
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But wait.
How can we pillory 'lazy brits' on one hand for not taking jobs - which this story proves - are paying wages that cannot sustain a normal life but on the other complain about immigration?
For many immigrants, these low paid supermarket jobs are the reason they come here. The doors were left deliberately open to allow cheap workers to come here and undercut the indigenous workforce. Supermarkets are, beyond the public sector, the biggest employers in the UK.
Therefore, you could argue, if the supermarkets actually paid fair wages then unemployment and immigration would be lower. The supermarkets were the main lobbyists for Sunday opening. This broke cherished parts of British culture and family life, you could no longer have a part-time job in retail without Mum being forced to work the weekend (and all the road haulage). There were no longer saturday student jobs etc. This had a profound affect on society.
If you want some to blame for broken britain, look no further than the big 4 supermarkets.
- Hansel, London, 21/06/2011 16:32
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How many of those protesting from the group Citizens Uk,are in fact cleaners or working for the contracting company employed by Tesco to clean its stores. It is quite fashionable to knock Tesco, but you dont have to shop there. And your complaint rests with your employer. Perhaps Citizens Uk should be spending the time in Greece.
- Mike, France, 21/06/2011 16:09
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Tesco's rates are a shocking exploitation of economically vulnerable staff and all action to secure cleaners the living wage should be applauded by every right thinking citizen
After all , when you are on just 7£ per hour, as the company should know, every little helps!
- chris connelley, ilford, 21/06/2011 15:53
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@Fedup Brit - I don't condone it either but it appears to be a model that many businesses with casual labour seem to work with these days (or has been developed over the last 10 years).
It's worth pointing out that a Union would demand a membership fee that many cannot sustain. Also, adminsitering Pension, Health, Sickness, Maternity costs a fortune, which I'm sure shareholders might gripe about paying.
- Hansel, London, 21/06/2011 14:45
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Fat cat companies pretend if they dont directly employ the person to clean their crap house,they should in no way be held responsible for slavery. They use Contractors so they are not associated with this form of slavery in the 21st centuary.All companies that are aware of these pathetic wages should be named and shamed,instead of being protected by a front company.The Evining standard should look into what cleaners of the top 50 companies get paid.
- dave, london, 21/06/2011 14:43
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Hansel,So that makes it Ok to pay such awful wages then does it.They cant get the support of a union to fight for decent wages and conditions,sounds more like a Chinese style system to me.
- Fedup Brit, London, 21/06/2011 14:22
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Bubs, who says Sainsburys and Asda are any better than Tesco in this regard? Asda is part of the Wal-Mart empire. Wal-Mart's reputation in the USA is terrible.
- Nigel, London, 21/06/2011 13:55
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Frank Copenhagen.People have been saying this for years,Hospitals are the same using contract cleaners. This is so stupid and must be more expensive so why do it.Why pay middle men who do nothing just provide Staff,its just crazy.
- Fedup Brit, London, 21/06/2011 13:43
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@david - The reason why more and more companies hire staff through service company contracts is because, between workplace law and the unions it can become a nightmare getting rid of a poor performing workers and amongst other things and the company also run the risk of an underfunded pension scheme.
The service company also hire people on contracts and not on a permanent basis ensuring that the owness is on the individual worker. In the event of liability, the worker sure the service company and not the client.
Also, you state that this is a 'British Ploy' then go onto list US companies.
- Hansel, London, 21/06/2011 13:40
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Tesco says it does not have control over what its cleaners are paid as they are employed by another firm.
Solution. Tesco should employ the cleaners and cut out the contractors who are creaming off the money.
Tesco should then pay them a decent wage or give them
discounts on shopping at Tesco as part of the overal salary package. This would be more attractive to the cleaners on low income as a greater percentage of their earnings go on food.
- Frank, Copenhagen, Denmark, 21/06/2011 13:32
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This is a typical British ploy ,sub contract out for workers then plead innocents. Tesco no doubt pays the cleaning company around 10 pounds an hour,the cleaning company pockets 50 percent and the slave gets the balance. A number of large successful companies do this and then plead ignorance to their works right,including big names like GE , Walt Disney and coca cola. Why not value each employee and take them on in house, you would still save two quid an hour.It is not only cleaning staff that are used as slaves,the list is endless.
- david, london, 21/06/2011 13:22
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I am swtiching more to Asda and Sainsbury's now. I have gone right off Tesco. They seem to think they are God.
- Bubs, London, 21/06/2011 13:22
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the obscenly rich philpip clarke should be grateful its a flash mob not a lynch mob. A few of these greedy managers swinging would soon bring them to their senses
- john lowe, london, 21/06/2011 13:09
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Tesco are the most unlikable of the major supermarkets. I am glad they are performing poorly.
- Richard, Tesco, 21/06/2011 12:40
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More power to the mop I say, I hope they get what they deserve, "A clean sweep"
- Mark, South East London, 21/06/2011 12:35
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As a Tesco shareholder, I'll be writing to Phillip Clark wanting to know why he's taking an 'It's not my problem, Jack' attitude to this. If is wasnt' for the army of cleaners, his stores wouldn't be able to legally function, and it's a disgrace that a CEO of such a large multi-national organisation can adopt such a neanderthal attitude. It is Tesco who awards the contracts, so it should be Tesco who call the shots, and the biggest shot of all should be to ensure that all contractors are properly rewarded. No doubt if he could get away with it, Phillip Clark would have no qualms about employing work-experience kids to do the job - anything to ensure his mega-million salary package doesn't shrink. Sorry, Phil. You've go no excuses on this one. Pay those cleaners a 21st century salary, as you pay yourself likewise.
- Gatedweller, People's Republic of Newham, 21/06/2011 12:11
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This is clearly Tesco's problem. They set the contract prices and if the prices are so low that the contractor cannot pay the Living Wage then it is down to Tesco to pay more for their cleaning. Cleaning companies I know would be glad to pay the Living Wage and prove to the client they were doing so by open book accounting.
- Andrew, London, 21/06/2011 12:07
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Paul.Your so right companies like Tescos cant seem to understand without its cleaners it wouldn't be able to open its doors,they seem to think upper management are their only essential staff.
- Dont shop atTescos, London, 21/06/2011 12:05
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It's disgusting what these huge supermarkets pay staff. They are crippling our farmers, butchers and dairies... charging customers huge prices as they decrease the measures and weights of products they sell us.
I fully support the cleaners and despise these companies who mis treat people who just what to raise a family and try to live in rip-off Britain.
- Paul, Bromley, 21/06/2011 11:29
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