THE PCS trade union has called for the proposed staff redundancies at Clarence House to be halted and pledged to support every member of staff following the announcement, during the period of mourning for the Queen, that around 100 workers’ jobs are at risk.
The union said: ‘We believe the decision to announce redundancies in the Royal Household during the period of national mourning is nothing short of heartless.
‘Up to 100 employees at King Charles’ former official residence, including some who have worked there for decades, received notification that they could lose their jobs following his accession to the throne.
‘This is a significant majority of the household and many of these staff will be the same people who have so diligently supported the new king during this period of mourning, working extremely hard over recent days only to be given redundancy notices as thanks.’
The PCS stated: ‘We are working to ensure that staff have full job security and to ensure that they receive the information on their legal rights, the redundancy process and what support is available to them. We continue to support other royal staff concerned that their futures will have been thrown into turmoil by this announcement at this already difficult time.’
PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: ‘While some changes across the households were to be expected, as roles across the royal family change, the scale and speed at which this has been announced is callous in the extreme. Least of all because we do not know what staffing the incoming Prince of Wales and his family might need. We therefore call for an immediate halt to the redundancy process.’
The PCS statement continued: ‘We will be visiting Clarence House as soon as possible and ensuring that every member of staff receives the information on their legal rights, the redundancy process and what support is available to them.
‘We believe that the change will have a knock-on effect across the royal family’s estates, with Prince William now adopting the role of Prince of Wales. It seems highly unlikely that he will be able to manage the additional workload of the Prince of Wales without extra staff, and so the announcement is not only callous in its timing but also premature in the extreme.
‘The staffing changes are also likely to directly affect the Royal Households themselves, although to a much lesser extent. While, of course, we will resist any compulsory redundancies in the Royal Household, where we are the recognised trade union, it is also noteworthy that the RH has not made any formal announcement of redundancies during a period of mourning.
‘The Royal Household is exempt from a number employment laws, including the Equality Act, but it does not appear that Clarence House is, so we will be ensuring that all measures are taken to protect any staff, who choose to join PCS, under the act. And we would urge the new king and government to reverse the exemption on the Royal Household.’
This episode shows how wrong the TUC leaders were to postpone their Congress that was due to take place on September 12th.
As News Line said at the time: ‘However, while it is possible to betray the working class it is impossible to postpone the class struggle. It has to be fought out, and won, or all of the basic gains and rights of the working class will be destroyed.’
Meanwhile the trade union leaders are stopping strikes, postponing congresses, and instead are honouring the memory of Elizabeth II while trade union members at Clarence House are fearful for their jobs.
We say now what we said when the TUC cancelled its Congress: ‘The working class must rapidly teach the TUC that the working class is the boss and reinstate the Congress at once.’
The Congress must meet and call a general strike to bring down the Tories and bring in a nationalised and planned economy that will be able to satisfy the requirements of the working class and the middle class. Capitalism can only offer super inflation, hunger, poverty and mass unemployment.
The way forward is for the date of the postponed TUC Congress be announced now, and for the TUC to publicly announce that not only will it defend all the Clarence House jobs, it will defend the jobs and and wages of all workers. Recall the TUC Congress, stop all sackings and name the date for the general strike to bring down the Tories!
TUC HAS NOW REINSTATED CONGRESS!
Tuesday 18th October to Thursday 20th in Brighton
