Striking workers at the National Coal Mining Museum in Wakefield have urged managers to come clean over the attraction’s financial position in order to unlock a lengthy pay dispute.
More than 40 members of staff have been on strike since mid-August last year in the dispute over pay.
Throughout that time, the museum’s management has refused to disclose any financial information to help UNISON understand what might be within its budget to negotiate an acceptable deal.
Proposals put forward by the union have been dismissed as “unaffordable” but no evidence has been provided to support this.
Museum chiefs, who also rejected efforts to find a solution through arbitration service Acas, have now agreed to answer written questions.
Workers have formally submitted six questions* in the hope of shedding light on museum finances and finding a deal agreeable to both sides.
This demonstrates how staff are doing all they can to resolve the dispute and return to work.
Employees want to know more about wage increases given to the highest-paid staff and details of the impact on the budgeted pay bill.
The museum has paid tens of thousands of pounds on bringing in outside security staff during the strike, which the union says would have been better spent on settling the dispute rather than prolonging it.
UNISON Yorkshire and Humberside regional organiser Rianne Hooley said: “Workers are doing everything they can to understand the museum’s financial position.
“That’ll help them to negotiate a fair and affordable wage rise and ensure there’s a future supply of employees to keep the vital link with the UK’s industrial heritage alive.
“Staff care deeply about the museum and all it represents. The last thing they want is to worsen any financial pressure, which is why it’s crucial for them to understand what’s causing the blockage.”
Notes:
– *UNISON has submitted the following questions on behalf of workers to better understand the financial position:
- What is the budgeted pay bill for the Museum for the current financial year?
- In June 2025 the SLT agreed to recommend to the Board of Trustees a pay settlement of £1 per hour or 5% whichever is the greater. What would have been the total cost of this pay settlement?
- In August 2025 the employer made a pay offer of 80p per hour or 5% whichever is the greater. What would have been the total cost of this pay settlement?
- In October 2025 the employer made a pay offer of £1 per hour for electricians and fitters or 5%. What would have been the total cost of this pay settlement?
- In January 2026 the employer made a pay offer of 84p or 5% whichever is greater. What would have been the total cost of this pay settlement?
- The annual accounts show that the remuneration of the highest paid employee (usually the chief executive) was between £80,001 and £90,000. This figure was up from the bracket of £70,001-£80,000 the previous year, but unfortunately the presentation of the figures as broad brackets do not allow anyone to discern the actual percentage increase. What is the actual percentage increase of this salary?
– Museum managers rejected a counter-proposal put forward by workers to resolve the dispute. More information is available here.
– In December, UNISON called for the museum to publish its spending on private security, which has been in place for the entirety of the strike.
– More than 40 workers have been on strike at the National Coal Mining Museum since August 2025 in a pay dispute. The industrial action is scheduled to run until the end of June 2026 unless an acceptable offer is put forward.
2 thoughts on “Coming clean on budgets is key to resolving mining museum dispute”
Comments are closed.