"It's a struggle to make ends meet from month to month," says Merline Chambers.
The workers assembled outside the BEIS building in central London tell the BBC they are paid between £8.21 - the statutory National Living Wage - and other levels under £10. Ms Chambers, employed by catering company Aramark which took on the contract a year ago, has worked in the coffee shops for more than 10 years.
"Some people are using credit cards to survive," he says. "They need to look at [the high] interest rates". "We are in the control room. We man the cameras, we see to the function of the guards [on the door] and tell them what to do," says Mr Torsu. A Beis spokesperson said: "We have ensured that our contractors align the pay of cleaning, catering, mail room and security staff to the median rates for comparable occupations as identified in the annual survey of hours and earnings."On Friday, some of the workers on strike intend to head to Tunbridge Wells - Mr Clark's constituency.
Point to note. Aromark is a private company so the strikers are not government workers
I wonder how much credit card debt accounts for them 'not making ends meet'. Poor money management is more likely to be the cause rather than just being underpaid.
I work for the civil service and considering the pay rises Mps get those doing the actual administration deserve a decent pay rise. Some civil servants are on less than if they worked in Maccies which isn't right.
So that's the majority of the workforce demographic, civil service, MI5 et al, the Lord's & the Queen all looking at 150,000 Tory party members with rage.Think the Tory Gaurd should remember that 135,000 sick & vulnerable people have already died due to Tory false austerity...💯
Trash!
Ummmm....how about getting a second job or more education to get a promotion? Work harder people!
Can't be doing too bad if they can have a day off
not as much of a struggle as those on zero hours contracts
'Outsourced' then Aramark need to step-up, they put in the bid to the government that was won &awarded, if they low balled to win the contract, that is up-to them.
No one forces them to work there.
The opposite problem of Govt workers in the US who make 2x+ what they'd make in the private sector.