Notting Hill staff vote to strike

Nearly 57 per cent of more than 200 Unison members at Notting Hill Housing Group voted in the ballot and more than 93 per cent of them backed strike action.

A date for the strike will be set in the next few weeks. Staff voted for industrial action over proposed changes to terms and conditions.

Mary Powell, Unison Housing Associations branch secretary, said: ‘It is highly unusual for Unison members in London housing associations to take industrial action, however NHHT has left its staff with little choice. The ballot result is clear.’

She said the branch and its wider membership were completely behind Unison members at Notting Hill.

But she added: ‘The employer does still, however, have an opportunity to return to the negotiating table so long as they genuinely want to reach an agreement.’

A spokesperson for Notting Hill said it was sorry that ‘some people feel this way’ but that it respected their right to take action. She added that the majority of staff ‘have chosen to sign their contracts and move forward’.

‘We will do our absolute best to make sure that any form of industrial action does not disrupt our services to residents,’ she added.

‘Our view is that the new terms and conditions at Notting Hill are a good offer that provides everyone with enough flexibility to achieve a good work/life balance and meet the needs of our customers.

‘It is essential that we transform our business to improve our customer service and change is an inevitable part of this process.’