Diligenta workers fight on for pay justice
Text of a Socialist Party Scotland leaflet
Socialist Party Scotland offers our 100% support to striking Unite members at Diligenta. The massive vote of 87% to reject the latest company offer on an 80% turnout is as clear a reflection as possible of the determination and confidence to fight on for pay justice.
With none of the elements of the pay offer anywhere near good enough, what other choice did the Unite members have but to continue to carry on striking?
All the workers want is a decent pay rise and some respect. The strike action will cause yet more disruption to Diligenta’s clients, Management have had every opportunity to make Unite members a fair pay offer but have refused to take part in meaningful negotiations on pay.
Approximately 1,000 Unite members working at Diligenta sites in Liverpool, Glasgow, Reading, Edinburgh and Stirling are holding their latest one-week strike from Monday 26 January.
As Sharon Graham said: “Diligenta has failed to grasp the strength of anger of its workforce. Imposing real terms pay cut on its workers, while making millions of pounds of profits and continuing to reward shareholders is completely unacceptable.”
Unite rightly commented: “The workers are involved in outsourced work undertaking call centre, back office and complaints’ roles for several clients including Lloyds, M&G, Aviva and Phoenix. The strike action will cause considerable disruption to the operations of the companies that Diligenta provides service for.”
For a company that has made tens of millions in pre-tax profits over the past couple of years, with £14 million to the shareholders.
Socialist Party Scotland agrees that Diligenta’s workers deserve a fair pay deal. Get along to the picket lines and support the workers.
Rich get richer
A typical household in Scotland from the wealthiest 10% has £1.3 million in total wealth, compared to just £7,600 for the poorest 10%, while the richest 2% of households own more wealth than the bottom 50% combined.
Decisive socialist measures are needed to really fight for a better life for working class people in Scotland. The Scottish government and local councils should utilise financial mechanisms such as borrowing, recapitalisation of debt, reserves and a cancellation of PFI/PPP contracts to set no cuts budgets and build mass campaigns with the trade unions and local communities to demand back the billions stolen in cuts by Westminster and Holyrood.
A struggle for the socialist nationalisation of big industry, the banks, energy companies and supermarkets under democratic working-class control is needed. Such systemic change would see the mass building of high-quality council housing, full funding of the health and care system and the creation of skilled jobs in renewable industries in a worker’s transition from fossil fuels that is urgently needed.
We call on the STUC/TUC to coordinate workers’ strike action against attacks from the government and greedy bosses. Never has it been more starkly posed that a working-class socialist political alternative is needed for the elections in May 2026, given that right-populist Reform and the far-right are exploiting anger at austerity and the social conditions for which all parties in Holyrood are tainted with responsibility.
If the enthusiasm for a political alternative can be married to building a mass socialist force, with the 600,000 trade union members in Scotland at its heart, then the tide can be turned in favour of the working class And against all those who wield austerity as a weapon and attack public services while big business and the super-rich cash in.
That in turn would open the door to the overcoming of racism and division by a united working class and socialist movement. In the meantime we are encouraging Your Party to stand candidates for Holyrood in May 2026.
