A union ballot has gone out to Ritzy staff campaigning for the London Living Wage to vote on a new pay deal at the cinema.
BECTU, the media and entertainment industry union, has recommended that staff at the Ritzy cinema accept the new deal brokered with the Picturehouse on July 31.
The offer fell short of immediately paying the London Living Wage of £8.80 per hour but the company has promised to do so to all staff on main grades by September 2015. In addition, staff are being offered an immediate pay increase from £7.35 to £8 per hour, back-dated to october 2013.Supervisors will retain their differential of 50p per hour.
To take account of the likely increase in the London Living Wage, probably in November of this year, negotiators built in a further set of pay talks in June 2016 aimed at a two-year settlement with a guaranteed minimum rise to £9.10 an hour.
The ballot will close on August 26.
[…] at the Ritzy have voted to reject the pay offer recommended by their union BECTU. Here is the statement released by the Ritzy Living Wage Campaign […]
This is a poor deal and I hope the staff reject it. By the time they get the £8.80 an hour it won’t even be the Living Wage – so in TWO YEARS TIME there will be ‘a further set of pay talks … aimed at a two-year settlement with a guaranteed minimum rise to £9.10 an hour” – what does that mean? (I’ll tell you what it doesn’t mean, which is that they will get £9.10 an hour.( The Ritzy staff have terrific support and respect and have carriedout their campaign with dignity and good humour – they have shown their determination – the company have begun to move in the right direction and a bit more action should get them there.