Press release for SOAS cleaners

At 6.30am on Friday the 12th June, ISS (the company who contracts SOAS’ cleaning staff) called a meeting for all SOAS cleaners. Within minutes the meeting was raided by approximately 40 immigration police, who detained all cleaners and arrested 9 people accused of working without proper documentation. These 9 people are now on fast-track to be deported from the UK.

Graham Dyer, Lecturer in Economics of Developing Countries and SOAS UCU Chair said: “It is no co-incidence that there is an immigration raid at a time when the UCU, Unison and the NUS are fighting against the victimisation of a migrant worker who has been at the heart of a fight that has improved the pay and conditions of workers here at SOAS. It is also not coincidental that ISS had only just signed a union recognition agreement with UNISON last week. Our fight has united lecturers, staff and students and has rocked SOAS management. Those managers are now lashing out. It is a disgrace that SOAS management saw fit to use a seat of learning to intimidate migrant workers. This is their underhand revenge and we will do all we can to stop migrant workers paying the price.”

SOAS Students’ Union and NUS conference have passed policy supporting the Living Wage campaign and the amnesty of migrant workers, and urge you to show solidarity with UNISON and SOAS SU in:

Protest against the deportation of migrant workers and their families.

• Bring the all workers in house, to receive equal treatment to SOAS staff, and force the university to take full responsibility for them.
  
• Formally disassociate from agencies such as ISS, and condemn such practice as witnessed at SOAS.
  
• Support the ‘Stranger into Citizens Campaign’ which calls for an amnesty for all migrant workers.
  

We urge student unions around the country to contact their UNISON branches in preparation for similar raids of outsourced staff, and campaign to provide them with in-house employment rights. Last week there was a threat of a raid at UCL, as witnessed at SOAS today, which suggests it could happen anywhere, and necessitates that as a National body we show solidarity with all of our workers.

Demonstrate at 4.30 today outside SOAS. Please come down, show your solidarity and prepare further action.
Contact suwelfare@soas.ac.uk or women@soas.ac.uk for more information.



Marya Ahmed SOAS SU Welfare and Education
Eleanor James SOAS Women’s Officer and NUS Women’s Committee