Directives to hospital cleaners

Cleaning staff at St Luke's Hospital have been ordered by the General Workers' Union not to move from the ward they are assigned to.

They have also been directed not to do cleaning work if contractor workers are sent to work in the same ward, to only clean toilets and the kitchen, and not to phone to confirm their leave once this has been approved.

The union said the action - which started on Monday - was taken after no agreement was reached with the hospital management.

The dispute started a few months ago when a number of cleaners employed by a private contractor started working in hospital. The union had issued directives, but subsequently suspended them.

The union said that although it was cautious during negotiations not to disrupt the service for patients, the authorities responsible for the hospital's support services continued to give much of the cleaning work to private cleaners resulting in government workers being moved to other wards. The union had proposed that cleaning work be assigned only to contractor cleaners in exceptional circumstances and government workers are only moved to other wards when they are needed due to staff on vacation or sick leave.