Oxfam workers are voting to strike for the first time over pay as some staff say they have been forced to use food banks and cannot afford to pay their rent.
The union Unite has accused Oxfam of hypocrisy, saying the charity publicly condemns real-term wage cuts while paying its staff “poverty pay”.
The union said most of Oxfam’s office and retail workers earn little more than the minimum wage and that a recent survey found that staff were struggling amid the cost of living crisis.
In the last year, 8% had used food banks, 22% had not been able to pay their rent, and 34% had to choose between heating their homes and feeding their families, the survey of nearly 150 Oxfam employees found.
Meanwhile, Oxfam’s total income for 2022 was £373m, 86% of the pre-pandemic level of £434m, Unite said. It added that the charity’s cash surplus is higher than before the pandemic.
Unite’s general secretary, Sharon Graham, said: “Oxfam’s hypocrisy is astounding. This is a charity in robust financial health that makes much of belonging to the Ethical Trading Initiative and bestowing the virtues of unions to lift workers out of poverty.
“Meanwhile, Oxfam’s own staff are on poverty pay, with some using food banks and unable to pay their rent. How can its leadership possibly justify ignoring its workers’ demands to be paid fairly and blocking their union?
“Oxfam can well afford to pay a reasonable rise without the slightest impact on its operations here or abroad.”
Workers have rejected a pay increase of £1,750 or 6% (whichever is higher), plus a one-off payment of £1,000. Unite said average wages at Oxfam had fallen by 21% in real terms since 2018.
The charity is now seeking to impose the offer, which was rejected by 79% of the union’s members. Unite will ballot its members for strike action.
An Oxfam GB spokesperson said the charity would rather have reached an agreement with Unite, “but what they are asking for is simply not affordable at a time when many of the communities we work with are also facing sharply rising costs”.
The spokesperson added: “As a real living wage employer and an organisation committed to tackling poverty, Oxfam is acutely aware of the impact of the rising cost of living on colleagues and addressing that is a priority for us. That is why we chose to bring forward pay increases for lower-paid colleagues and why we have ensured that these colleagues will have received a real-terms pay increase over the past 12 months.
“We believe this pay award is fair and it is at the limit of what Oxfam can afford without taking vital resources away from our work fighting poverty with communities around the world. Colleagues understand that we face limited resources and tough choices, and we hope they will recognise that when casting their ballot.”
