Major step forward on HMRC Inland Pre-Clearance dispute
HMRC accepts more than 90% of IPC staff are shift workers and entitled to Shift Disturbance Allowance (SDA). Positive meeting held with HMRC, with commitment made to back-pay SDA. A members' meeting is set for 18 October.
In the recent strike and action short of a strike ballot, PCS members in HMRC's Inland Pre-Clearance site in Milton Keynes easily broke through the 50% turnout demanded by the government’s anti-union laws. In that ballot, more than 90% of responding members voted for both forms of industrial action.
HMRC accepts shift worker status
In our most recent meeting with the department, HMRC has accepted that in the case of more than 90% of staff working in Milton Keynes, are classified as “shift workers” and therefore qualify to receive SDA, at the rate of 7.5% of base pay. The very small number of staff who do not qualify, are those working standard, non-shift patterns.
In a constructive and positive meeting, HMRC has now recognised that those members should have been paid 7.5% Shift Disturbance Allowance for any time they have been working a shift pattern. HMRC has agreed to begin the process of assessing the period members have been working shifts and calculating the back-pay for the whole of that period, as well as the process of adjusting their pay going forward, if they are one of those IPC staff who continue to work shifts.
Next steps
PCS will now begin the next stage of working with the department to review cases where members in IPC have been working shifts but have not been properly remunerated, including former Milton Keynes members and members from the former Hayes site. We will also continue to work with the department, regarding its review of how this work will be undertaken in the future.
All-members’ meeting
PCS is convening an all-members’ meeting at 11:00 on Wednesday 18 October 2023 to discuss these developments and consult members on that progress. We will request paid time off to allow members to attend the meeting, and arrange for a Teams or Zoom link to be emailed to their personal email address, so IPC members should remember to check the email address we hold for them (remember, you can update your contact details using PCS Digital: register here to do this.)
Join PCS
As your trade union, PCS continues to negotiate with HMRC to stand-up for your interests. If you aren’t yet a member of PCS, then you should join today.