Councillors from every political party at Wakefield Council have come together to back a measure urging trustees of the National Coal Mining Museum to return to talks to settle a pay strike.
More than 40 workers have been staging industrial action since mid-August in a dispute over their wage increase.
The walkout has been extended into October due to the museum’s refusal to return to negotiations.
Now councillors have put differences aside to back a cross-party resolution calling on museum managers to get back around the table with UNISON, which represents staff.
The resolution highlights the crucial role employees play in the museum’s success.
It also highlights concerns about the behaviour of museum managers during the strike, as well as the risk of reputational harm for the much-loved institution if the dispute drags on.
The resolution calls for talks to resume swiftly and warns that the council will call on the culture secretary Lisa Nandy to step in if no progress is made.
Wakefield Council says it will also review financial support given to organisations where staff are taking industrial action.
Additionally, the issue has been raised in parliament. Jon Trickett, the MP for Normanton and Hemsworth, has tabled an early day motion to show support for striking workers and calling on trustees to reopen negotiations with the union.
UNISON Yorkshire and Humberside regional organiser Rianne Hooley said: “This is a clear message of support for workers from politicians across Wakefield, regardless of their allegiances.
“The message to museum managers and the board of trustees is clear. Refusal to negotiate runs the risk of serious harm to the museum.
“A return to talks is now a matter of urgency so this pay dispute can be resolved. The workers simply want to be paid fairly so they can get back to the jobs they love, keeping the area’s coal mining heritage alive for future generations.”
Notes:
– The cross-party resolution has been published on Wakefield Council’s website. You can read it in full here (“Motion v, Mover Councillor A Nicholls”).
– Jon Trickett’s Early Day Motion can be found here.
– The strike, which began on Wednesday 20 August, was due to finish in mid-September but has been extended until Sunday 12 October.
– UNISON has calculated that the museum will spend almost £50,000 on private security guards and a land train during the first month of strike days alone. The museum has not put forward any evidence to contradict the union’s calculation.
– In March, the National Coal Mining Museum put forward a 5% pay offer for all staff, which was rejected. A second offer was made in June via Acas talks of a £1 per hour uplift for mine guides and 5% for everyone else. UNISON said this had the potential effect of giving a greater pay rise to men (who make up the team of mine guides) than women employed elsewhere at the museum.
– UNISON suggested 5% or £1 per hour for all staff, whichever is greater, which the museum’s management said would be put forward as a pay rise suggestion to the board of trustees with a recommendation for acceptance. That was withdrawn 11 days later.
– In a meeting via ACAS less than a week before the strike was due to start, museum management made an offer of 80p an hour or 5% for all workers, whichever is the greater, despite a previous pledge to recommend the museum’s board of trustees accept £1 an hour or 5%.
– The national minimum wage for workers aged 21 and over in the UK is £12.21, as of 1 April 2025. Mine guides typically earn around £12.86 an hour, and many staff are on £12.60 per hour.
– UNISON says the three highest paid managers at the museum are on a combined salary of around £250k. The pay gap between the highest paid employee and the lowest is thought to be more than £120k.
– The museum has made an operating surplus of more than half a million pounds (£596,659). It has also been in surplus for the preceding four financial years. The museum has £10 million in reserves. UNISON believes the £1 per hour or 5% option would only add approximately £150k to the existing pay bill, still leaving the museum with an operating surplus of more than £400k.
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