06 May 2005
Unison, the UK's largest public sector union, has reached a landmark agreement with a leading provider of outsourced business services.
Liberata, which provides services to the public sector, including accounting, revenue and benefits collection and human resources, has formally recognised that Unison is the appropriate choice to speak for the workforce within the company at a national level.
Mark Holmes, Liberata's managing director, said: 'We are the only UK outsourcing business practically committed to ending the two-tier workforce and this will be achieved through our equal pay strategy and national collective bargaining.'
Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said: 'The new agreement enshrines the key principles of the Best Value code of conduct on the two-tier workforce. We are very pleased to be working with an employer that recognises and is prepared to act on equal pay while meeting the aspirations of our members.'
A Unison spokesman added that, with outsourcing deals predicted to increase over the next few years, the union needed to start working with large companies to ensure workers' rights were protected.
Liberata employs around 4,000 people in the UK and has contracts with 20 local authorities, as well as central government departments.
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