Hospital cleaners brought in-house

Nearly 300 cleaning and catering staff at a London hospital trust are to be brought back in-house after a year-long campaign by public services union UNISON.

The staff work at North Middlesex University Hospital but are currently employed by Medirest. They are on worse terms and conditions than colleagues employed directly by the NHS.

The trust has also agreed a commitment to increase pay for portering staff, who, from 1 September 2023, will receive the London Living Wage of £11.95 an hour.

UNISON branch secretary Paula Ward said the campaign was not over yet and the union would “continue fighting for all staff to be in-house”.