Diligenta staff escalate strike

Unite members employed by finance sector outsourcer Diligenta have today (January 12) restarted industrial action across five sites in a dispute over pay. The Diligenta staff in the head office site in Peterborough will now also be balloted for industrial action.

Diligenta management have failed to meaningfully negotiate with Unite on pay and this strike action follows five days of strike action which took place in November and December. Unite has made clear that further strike action could have been avoided if they had given its workforce an acceptable pay rise for 2025.

The strike action will cause yet more disruption to Diligenta’s clients. Management have had every opportunity to make Unite members a fair pay offer but have refused to take part in meaningful negotiations on pay.

Approximately 1,000 Unite members working at Diligenta sites in Liverpool, Glasgow, Reading, Edinburgh and Stirling will hold an initial one-week strike from just after midnight today (January 12) until 11.59pm on January 18. Further action will also be announced shortly.

 Unite general secretary, Sharon Graham said, “Diligenta has failed to grasp the strength of anger of its workforce. Imposing real terms pay cut on its workers, while making millions of pounds of profits and continuing to reward shareholders is completely unacceptable.”

The workers are involved in outsourced work undertaking call centre, back office and complaints roles for several clients including Lloyds, M&G, Aviva and Phoenix. The strike action will cause considerable disruption to the operations of the companies that Diligenta provides service for.

Diligenta made an average of £82,000 per staff member in 2023, its pre-tax profit was £27.1 million the same year. That increased in 2024 to £28.9 million whilst revenue increased to its highest ever at £606 million. 2024 saw a shareholder dividend payment of £14 million to the parent company TCS, which is a billion-dollar company. This dividend could have funded a five per cent increase for all staff.

Unite regional officer Helen Camp, said, “Unite members in Diligenta are escalating strike action and the Diligenta clients will face further delays because of the failure of management to give workers the fair pay deal they deserve. This industrial action will continue until we see a pay offer that reflects the economic reality workers face.

“Diligenta’s workforce deserve a fair pay deal and Unite members have had enough of being expected to live with a pay cut each year. Diligenta could end this dispute tomorrow by making a fair offer to its workers.”

By Saba Edwards