Many readers will have memories, fond or otherwise, of summer at Butlins camps where cheery, red-coated staff dragooned holiday-makers into knobbly knees competitions away from the disapproving eyes of Blackpool landladies. The 90-year-old chain is now much reduced after the working classes discovered that Spain’s sunny beaches provided more reliable weather.

At Bognor Regis on the south coast, where one of the three remaining camps is, workers are up in arms about conditions for Resort Safety Officers who suffer from chronic understaffing, faulty equipment, unlawful wage deductions and poor management. This is the reality behind the glossy photographs of the traditional fairground rides, live shows and swimming pools.

As a result members of the small United Voices of the World (UVW) street union have voted unanimously for industrial action.

Alan Riley, a Resort Safety Officer and UVW rep at Butlins Bognor Regis, points out that “We work 12-hour shifts dealing with violence, aggression, lost children and medical emergencies to keep families safe, yet we’re understaffed, unsupported and taken for granted.”

The union demands the removal of bad managers, £14 per hour and paid breaks for night shifts, the repayment of all unlawfully deducted wages, the reinstatement of statutory rest breaks, the recruitment of at least five more permanent Resort Safety Officers, a review of the uniform policy in consultation with the UVW, which should be recognised as their union of choice, and the reinstatement of an unfairly dismissed worker.

UVW say that only after workers organised and brought in their union, has Management begun making belated attempts to address some of these issues, including payment of wrongly deducted wages, although these attempts have themselves been deficient. Three years ago, workers raised fire safety concerns but these were ignored until very recently, and only very modest repairs were made.

UVW’s Assistant General Secretary Isabel Cortés said: “This overwhelming vote is a clear message from Butlin’s Resort Safety Officers. These workers are not taking strike action lightly. They are taking a stand because they believe the conditions they are working under are making it harder for them to keep guests and staff safe.”

She added that: “What is particularly striking is what happened when these workers began organising. They had raised fire safety concerns for more than three years, through thousands of reports, yet say they saw little meaningful action. Once they unionised and UVW warned that formal complaints could follow, Butlin’s began addressing those concerns within days.”

That is what workers’ or ganisation can achieve. When workers come together, they have a stronger voice and a greater ability to hold employers to account.”

The UVW is also involved in a wider battle on behalf of other workers in the hospitality sector. The union wants an end to zero-hours contracts. In May the Office for National Statistics reported that between 2021 and today, the number of workers on such contracts has risen from 881,000 to 1,235,000, a record level. This means unpredictable hours, unstable incomes (usually at a very low hourly rate) and being left at the mercy of employers. 16 to 24 year-olds make up the largest block at 475,000 or more than 38 per cent of that latest total. Women make up more than 56 per cent.

The Government’s own statistics state changes could give all businesses an extra bill of up to £2.9 billion annually, but this would give the economy a £10 billion boost due to improved productivity and employee health and wellbeing.

The Employment Rights Act 2025 has made some improvements with the Act giving qualifying workers new rights to guaranteed hours reflecting the hours they regularly work, reasonable notice of shifts and changes to those shifts, and payment when shifts are cancelled, curtailed or moved at short notice.

These new rules come into force on Tuesday, but the devil is in the detail The Government is presently consulting on the regulations that will determine how the new rights work in practice. Bosses are busy trying to water down the regulations.

Eraldo Strumiello, a chef working in central London and a UVW Executive Committee member, said: “I think the issue of zero-hours contracts is a serious problem for all workers, reminiscent of the Industrial Revolution, especially in this country. When employers need us to work more hours, they call us. I myself worked 55, 60 and even 65 hours a week during many periods of last year.” He also pointed out that “generally, migrant workers have to renew their visas and deal with other bureaucratic procedures, and they are at the mercy of their bosses, so they do not refuse to work so many hours”. But “when there is instability in companies, they reduce our working hours, leaving us in a very difficult financial situation.”

Employers are eager to find ways around the law.

Bosses also have been anxious to keep agency workers out of scope of the Act, but while in theory they have been included, Crawford Temple, CEO of Professional Passport which advises on such matters said the proposals would be “easy to sidestep”, although he has not giving away the details of his scheme.

Agency workers can be excluded because they already have guaranteed hours with a particular end hirer rather than the agency. Another important cop-out is that the proposals do not “force” agency workers to move into guaranteed-hours arrangements, as with all other categories of zero-hours worker. While this might be OK for students working for extra beer money, it will give bosses the chance to pressurise other workers into giving up their new rights.

Temple concludes that improvements to workers’ rights have “previously resulted in significant commercial damage to compliant operators, who have then been forced to relax their position to protect their businesses. The lack of timely enforcement to address unintended consequences has, and continues to, create a race to the bottom.” All the more reason for unions to up their recruitment activities.

by New Worker correspondent