My name is Tris Houseman and I work at the Saint James Tavern (SJT) in central Brighton. My colleagues and I have just voted to go on strike this summer because we are fed up with zero-hours contracts and poverty wages. We want to be treated with dignity and respect. We need your support!
We are members of United Voices of the World, and just days after our union gave notice of our official strike dates, which followed a lawful ballot in May, our bosses called us into disciplinary meetings. They accuse us of having defamed and brought the business into disrepute in the media and social media, but they have not supplied any evidence to back this up.
We feel this is an attack on ourselves, workers that dared to organise, join a union and demand decent working conditions: full sick pay scheme, £11.50 an hour, 24-hour response security team, an end to zero-hour contracts and no cuts to staff hours.
I love working at the SJT. My colleagues and I are a close-knit family, and we enjoy working together. but since the SJT was leased to their new owners, Zakaria Abedi and Victoria Bennett, things have taken a turn for the worse. The entire team has been left feeling completely undermined and neglected. Some of us feel that the atmosphere has become toxic and hostile. Some of us are are bringing a claim against them for alleged harassment and discrimination, including allegations of sexsim, disability discrimination, transphobia, homobophia and anti-Semitic comments.
SJT is leased from Stonegate Group, the largest pub company in the UK, to the current owners. We’ve tried talking to them too but Stonegate are not willing to take responsibility, claiming not to have the power to make changes at SJT. They say the leaseholders, Zak and Vicky, are the decision makers.
Please, donate to our strike fund.
The funds will be used to help us cover our lost wages. Please give generously to help us win our fight for dignity and respect at Saint James Tavern pub.
For more information on us, our bosses and our demands go to our campaign page here >>