Hundreds of workers at a charity that began in Oxford are balloting for strike action for the first time after rejecting a “substandard” pay offer.

“Oxfam’s hypocrisy is astounding,” said Unite general secretary Sharon Graham, “this is a charity in robust financial health that makes much of belonging to the Ethical Trading Initiative and bestowing the virtues of unions to lift workers out of poverty.”

According to trade union Unite a recent survey of nearly 150 Oxfam workers found that in the last year eight per cent had used foodbanks, 22 per cent had not been able to pay their rent and 34 per cent have had to choose between heating their homes and feeding their families.

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Oxfam GB office and retail workers, most earning little more than the minimum wage, rejected a pay offer of £1,750, plus a one-off payment of £1,000.

The union claims average wages at Oxfam have fallen by 21 per cent in real terms since 2018.

Reportedly, the charity is now seeking to impose the offer and is refusing to engage in further negotiations with Unite, even though the union’s members rejected it by 79 per cent in a ballot.

In response, Unite will ballot its members for strike action from October 26 to November 16.

Ms Graham added: “Oxfam’s own staff are on poverty pay, with some using foodbanks and unable to pay their rent. How can its leadership possibly justify ignoring its workers’ demands to be paid fairly and blocking their union?

“Oxfam can well afford to pay a reasonable rise without the slightest impact on its operations here or abroad."

In response, an Oxfam GB spokesperson said: “As a real living wage employer and an organisation committed to tackling poverty, Oxfam is acutely aware of the impact of the rising cost of living on colleagues and addressing that is a priority for us.

“That is why we chose to bring forward pay increases for lower paid colleagues and why we have ensured that these colleagues will have received a real terms pay increase over the past 12 months.  “We believe this pay award is fair and it is at the limit of what Oxfam can afford without taking vital resources away from our work fighting poverty with communities around the world.

The union claims workers are angry that their request for a pay rise that reflects historic low pay, rocketing living costs and the charity’s healthy finances has been denied.

This is allegedly despite staff voluntarily accepting pay freezes for two out of the last five years, resulting in a real terms pay cut of over 21 per cent per employee on average since 2018.

Unite regional coordinating officer Jamie Major said: “The last thing Oxfam needs is further damage to its reputation.

“But its leadership seems intent on doing just that by disregarding how much their low paid staff are struggling financially and their attempts at union-busting by ending negotiations and imposing the pay deal.”

The charity’s spokesperson added: “We value the work of our trade unions and would much rather have reached agreement with Unite but what they are asking for is simply not affordable at a time when many of the communities we work with are also facing sharply rising costs.” 

 

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This story was written by Matthew Norman, he joined the team in 2022 as a Facebook community reporter.

Matthew covers Bicester and focuses on finding stories from diverse communities.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Matthew.norman@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @OxMailMattN1