Union members protested against further privatisation of home care services outside a Southend Council meeting.
The Council's Community Services Scrutiny Committee discussed proposals to reorganise the Council's Home Care provision by creating a care support team and tendering services for the whole of the Southchurch/Shoebury area.
The committee voted to refer the report to full council, which will debate it in September.
Banner-waving UNISON members, supported by the Southend Pensioners' Campaign, chanted and handed out leaflets setting out their fears for jobs, wages and conditions, and for the standard of care the private sector will provide.
UNISON branch secretary Claire Wormald said: "Home care workers showed they feel very strongly that it is time the slide into privatising caring services was stopped.
"We are sure the public want to see an end to privatisation. We are all aware of what it has meant in industries like the railways - why allow the care of vulnerable people in our community to go the same way?"
Published Thursday July 15, 2004
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