The Solidarity Federation has been organising pickets in support of workers’ sacked in Northern Ireland for raising health and safety concerns. The workers had appeared to have won a key victory against their employer  Obsidian-Echo Body Piercing after walking out over the refusal of their employer to provide vaccines against hepatitis despite being exposed to blood and other bodily fluids as part of their job. (see previous posts). 

However, within days of returning to work after all their demands were met their employer dismissed the workers involved on the bogus grounds that the workers had caused representational damage to the company. As a result their union Organises IWA have reopened their campaign against Obsidian-Echo Body Piercing.

As part of that campaign, the Solidarity Federation has organised two successful pickets against Peninsula HR, based in Manchester. Peninsula HR has been hired by Obsidian-Echo Body Piercing to advise them during the dispute. Peninsula likes to portray itself as an ethical company; it is far from it. Its handling of the dispute has been appalling, breaching government guidance and health and safety legislation. The sickening thing is that Peninsula HR offers to take over companies’ HR, no doubt for an extortionate fee, with a promise to keep workers safe.

“Offload your Health & Safety to the UK’s leading Health & Safety outsourcing company and have confidence that our 24/7 safety service will protect both your employees and your business” Peninsula HR advertisement

The company has a long history of mistreating its workers. In the past decade alone, Employment Tribunals have found Peninsula HR  guilty of unfair dismissal, unauthorised deductions from wages, breach of contract, and both sex and disability discrimination. Peter Done, founder and CEO, claims he and his brother Fred founded Peninsula Business Services after an employment tribunal ruled against them for unfair dismissal, brought by an “awkward employee”.

The two charmers Peter and Fred Done also own the betting firm Betfred and are both billionaires. In 2020, another company, Health Assured, owned by the two brothers, was found to be earning millions of pounds from government contracts to provide gambling addiction treatment for public sector workers.

You can support the workers by donating to the crowdfunding campaign. For more information, please contact either organiseasi@gmail.com or mcrsolfed@gmail.com