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Care workers to strike over council outsourcing

Edward RoweGloucestershire Political Reporter
News imageSherrie Ellie More than a dozen women are standing on the steps of Shire hall. Many have red tops on and black trousers whilst others are dressed in white. They are holding up cardboard placards saying things like "stop outsourcing" and "stop the transfer." The largest banner is a cloth one saying "county of Gloucestershire" on a purple background with the Unison logo below.Sherrie Ellie
The reablement workers say the plans were only confirmed to them in June

Dozens of care workers are set to strike over plans to outsource their work to a private company.

The reablement workers, who help people regain their independence after a hospital stay, plan to take industrial action this month ahead of Gloucestershire County Council (GCC) outsourcing their contracts to a private company.

Worker Mandy Hayward said she was heartbroken, adding: "There's been no compassion, no empathy shown to us as the workers."

Council chiefs said they are making sure the service "remains sustainable for the future" while working robustly to "minimise" the impact of any strikes.

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Sally Umpleby has worked for the team for 24 years and says the team has "hundreds" of years of experience.

"The minimum years someone has been with us is 16 years," Umpleby said.

"We all feel we've been disregarded as people, we're just numbers.

"We're sad and we're angry," she added.

The staff are not being offered redundancy packages, instead their contracts will transfer over to the new provider on 1 September.

GCC operate the reablement service with a several other organisations including Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust and Retain Healthcare.

They say, despite the changes, GCC will continue to lead the service with residents receiving support to regain their independence.

News imageMandy Hayward A woman with gray hair and glasses. The head and shoulder shot shows Mandy smiling. Behind her is a grey sofa and a shelf with various trinkets on such as a Buddha a candle and some books.Mandy Hayward
Despite working for the service for 18 years Mandy Hayward (pictured) is one of the shortest serving staff members

The staff have said mental health and morale has been a serious issue since the move was announced.

GCC said the team were offered support from HR and they have been engaging with colleagues regularly since the decision was made in July 2025.

But those in the reablement team have told the BBC nothing was confirmed to them until the start of June 2026.

News imageSherrie Ellie A closer shot, similar to the headline image. The women, of which many have red tops on and black trousers , whilst others are in white, are holding placards on the steps of shire hall made of cardboard. saying things like "keep reablement in house" and "we do not want our jobs outsourced".Sherrie Ellie
The group are expected to strike this month but it's not yet clear when

In a joint statement from GCC and their partners they said they have not "received formal notification or details of a strike from Unison", but "respect" staffs rights to take industrial action.

"We recognise and value the dedication, expertise and professionalism of reablement staff and remain committed to continuing constructive engagement with staff and trade union representatives throughout this process," they said.

The BBC understands strike action is expected to take place this month, before the team moves to the private providers. The BBC has contacted Unison to confirm.

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