The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union is fighting plans by management at the Imperial War Museum to no longer recognise it as a union that can represent staff members. The campaign is supported by 33 MPs who have called on the government to act if the dispute remains unresolved.
Françoise Harris, the director of Imperial War Museums, wrote to the three unions representing workers, PCS, First Division Association (FDA) and Prospect, telling them that the museum group is no longer recognising PCS and FDA and will only deal with Prospect. Traditionally Prospect represents staff in curatorial roles, PCS often represents lower paid workers and FDA generally focuses on senior and middle management.
The Imperial War Museums incorporates five sites across England: the Imperial War Museum in London, Imperial War Museum North, based in Greater Manchester, HMS Belfast, the Churchill War Rooms and Imperial War Museum Duxford in Cambridgeshire.
Fran Heathcote, the general secretary of PCS, says the union was launching a campaign to oppose the move. She says: “PCS will fight this blatant attack on our members’ democratic choices. Our members have chosen to trust us to represent their interests at work but that choice would be denied them if we are derecognised.
“Trade unions are the guardians of heritage workers’ rights, advocating for fair treatment and dignified working conditions for generations.
“Heritage is not merely a relic of the past but a dynamic force that shapes our present and future. It’s our collective responsibility to ensure its preservation for future generations.”
A spokesperson for the Imperial War Museum group says: “For an organisation of our size, we believe that it is proportionate to recognise one union. As Prospect is the only union which has notified us of elected representatives, we feel that they are best placed to represent our workforce. This is not a decision that has been taken lightly, and a great deal of consideration has been given to the best way forward.”
Asked to clarify if the PCS was to notify the museums of their elected representatives the spokesperson said no further comment would be given. The PCS Union says it uses active members called advocates to negotiate and had notified the museums multiple times who they were.
Staff at the museums are currently split across three groups. ZE Global, a security management contractor, which does recognise PCS, the Imperial War Museums charity, where PCS and FDA are threatened with derecognition and the Imperial War Museums trading arm, which covers the shops and cafes, and which does not have union recognition. PCS says a recent management run survey of staff in the trading arm resulted in 80% of workers saying they wanted union representation and that the derecognition notice followed this result.
The union’s campaign has the backing of 33 MPs, across four political parties, who have signed an early day motion, which they hope to continue after the resumption of parliament following the general election. In the motion the MPs call on the government to intervene to resolve the dispute and ensure the unions remain recognised.
The motion states: “That this house is alarmed by reports that Imperial War Museums plans to derecognise the Public and Commercial Services union and the First Division Association.” It goes on to say that “derecognising any union undermines the principles of democracy and representation in the workplace, and could have significant negative effects on equality by exacerbating wage disparities, reducing job security and access to benefits, worsening working conditions, diminishing workers’ voice and representation, limiting training and advancement opportunities, and weakening legal protections for workers.”
