Win for PCS over pay date changes at OCS.

As part of the transfer of employment, OCS forcibly changed the pay date of all frontline facilities staff from the 27th of the month to the 14th. This caused a 7-week pay day wait in the run up to Christmas. 

The change plunged the lowest paid staff at 10 Downing, Street, the Canary Wharf civil service hub, the Cabinet and Foreign Offices into unnecessary debt and financial hardship during a cost-of-living crisis. 99% of respondents to a PCS survey said the change would cause them severe financial hardship and did not agree with the change.

The agreement reached includes:

• An additional pay date on 27 November, where staff will receive 2 weeks’ pay.
• 1 month’s pay to be paid on 14 December. Thereafter the 14th of the month becomes staff’s regular pay date. 
• The option for staff to access an interest free loan of up to two week’s pay. This is repayable over 15 months from February 2024. 
• An inconvenience payment of £100 net. 

The agreement was reached on the eve of commencing a strike ballot of key workers employed at the Foreign Office site in East Kilbride. The ballot was part of an industrial, political and public campaign which attracted media coverage and generated nearly 5,500 signatures to a public petition.  

Local PCS representative, Eddie Storrie said “By union members working together, we have stopped redundancies at the East Kilbride site and now stopped staff facing financial hardship before Christmas. What better evidence do OCS workers need of the benefit of PCS union membership?

“We hope our colleagues who have transferred to ISS who are facing similar pay changes can take hope from us and fight to reach a similar agreement.” 

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If you work in catering, cleaning, maintenance, security or any other facilities management role Join PCS and encourage your workmates to join too.