The Leading News & Information Service For The Facilities, Workplace & Built Environment Community

Are You Being Served? - Massive Decline In Directly Employed Maintenance Workers

Are you being served
11 April 2018 | Updated 13 April 2018
 

In days of yore, nearly all public and private sector departments had their own in-house maintenance team. But not anymore Building Cost Information Service research has found - highlighting a massive decline in directly employed maintenance staff.

From the early 80s, when public sector organisations were required to put maintenance work out to tender, the work has either been let to private sector organisations or the direct labour organisations (DLO) have themselves been privatised, says the report which focuses on the public sector.

BCIS (which operates under RICS - the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) has obtained figures, under freedom of information requests to the National Health Service and Local Government, that shed light on the numbers of maintenance workers still directly employed in the health and local authority sectors.

 

NHS - 1,862

The results suggest that there are now very few NHS maintenance staff paid under the nationally agreed Agenda for Change wage awards for engineers, craftsmen or labourers. The total number of staff employed, using the above job roles and as submitted by individual NHS organisations, is just 1,862.

A similar reduction in directly employed Local Authority maintenance staff levels was found in surveys carried out by Local Government. The surveys estimated that between 2005 and 2017 the number of craftworkers had fallen from 12,000 to 4,000.

 

Forecasts

BCIS had a particular interest in the subject as the decline has tended to change the wage awards under which maintenance staff are employed. The mix of wage awards forms part of the models for RICS maintenance indices and forecasts.

However, BCIS also warns there are no official statistics to validate the data. For example, the NHS advised that there may be other directly employed staff members carrying out maintenance duties but not under the defined job descriptions.

Picture: The old fashioned notion of an in-house maintenance team has practically gone

Article written by Brian Shillibeer | Published 11 April 2018

Share



Related Articles

ISS Wins Catering Contract With Kent and Medway NHS Trust

A five-year contract to provide catering services for Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust has been won by ISS. 50 new food host jobs will be created...

 Read Full Article
Insights from RICS UK Facilities Management Survey

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has published its latest quarterly FM survey, which collects data from facilities managers, service providers and FM...

 Read Full Article
Linen Wastage is a 'Mark' Against NHS Sustainability Targets, Says Textile Services Association

The CEO of the Textile Services Association has criticised the levels of linen wastage in the NHS, which causes unnecessary carbon and water use. According to the...

 Read Full Article
RICS Publishes Manifesto for the Built Environment

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has launched its manifesto to inspire a roadmap for the built environment in the lead-up to the next UK General...

 Read Full Article
RICS Launches New Carbon Assessment Standard

A new assessment standard from The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors is set to become the leading framework for carbon measurement in the built...

 Read Full Article
Dalkia UK Wins FM Contract With The Christie NHS Foundation Trust

Dalkia UK has signed a contract to deliver technical facilities management services at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust’s new Patterson Building. In 2017 there...

 Read Full Article
Royal Surrey County Hospital Awarded First NHS Exemplar Status for Portering Services

Royal Surrey County Hospital and its partner Medirest have been awarded the first NHS “Exemplar” status for outstanding portering services, which has only...

 Read Full Article
Improvements to England's Worst Housing Stock Could Save NHS £13bn

Remedial work to England’s poorest quality housing could provide £135.5 billion in societal benefits over the next 30 years. These benefits include...

 Read Full Article
Community Hospital UK’s First to Achieve Carbon Neutrality

Rye, Winchelsea & District Memorial Hospital has become the UK’s first community hospital to achieve carbon neutrality. The NHS hospital is fully...

 Read Full Article
Kier Wins Contract to Upgrade Birmingham Hospitals

Kier has been appointed by the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Trust for a three-year programme of upgrades across the estate. The University Hospitals Birmingham...

 Read Full Article