Windsor Castle staff poised to take industrial action for first time in history as wardens demand £7.85 an hour Living Wage

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Members of the Royal Household are poised to take industrial action over pay for the first time in history, it was claimed last night.

Wardens at Windsor Castle claim they receive poor salaries and perform extra duties for visitors for no additional money.

Union officials say guides are paid terribly and have suffered years of ‘wage restraint’ despite working for the ‘country’s richest family’.

Wardens at Windsor Castle (pictured here collecting flowers laid by well-wishers following the death of The Queen Mother) claim they receive poor salaries and perform extra duties for visitors for no additional money

Wardens’ main duties are to meet and greet visitors, tell them about the history of the Castle, and hand out free audio guides.

But The Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) said many are asked to go above and beyond this for no extra pay, including leading paid-for guided tours at the Castle.

Other workers administer first aid or speak to tourists in a foreign language without being paid extra, they said.

Now, the PCS says workers could adopt ‘work to rule’ – industrial action where workers do no more than the minimum required by their contract – unless they receive a pay hike.

They said wardens were on as little as £7.70 an hour, or £14,400 a year for a 36-hour week.

This is below the Living Wage, a voluntary threshold for employers which rose to £7.85 in November, but significantly above the minimum wage of £6.50 an hour.

Windsor Castle said wages will rise to the new Living Wage in April, but the PCS argue this should have happened last November.

A spokesman for PCS said: ‘Workers are being paid really poor wages despite working for the country’s richest family.

Windsor Castle (pictured) said wages will rise to the new Living Wage in April, but the PCS argue this should have happened last November

‘A large proportion of staff have chosen to work at the Castle because they feel they are working the Queen and for the Royal Family.

‘Their employers should not take advantage of that and abuse their goodwill by not properly rewarding them.’

The wardens work for the Royal Collection Trust, a charity which presides over one of the world’s largest and most important works of art, jewels and artefacts.

The Public and Commercial Services Union said the Queen and Royal Family should not 'abuse the (workers') goodwill by not properly rewarding them'

It is held in trust by the sovereign on behalf of the nation, and workers for the Collection are therefore employees of the Royal Household.

Forty wardens out of 200 workers at Windsor Castle have been balloted on whether they want to take industrial action.

While the union has ruled out a strike, staff may refuse to work overtime and conduct guided tours and insist on taking their full lunch breaks.

If wardens vote for this, it would be the first time staff have ever done so over working conditions specific to a Royal Household, the PCS said.

A spokeswoman for the Royal Collection Trust said workers undertook extra roles voluntarily and were under no obligation to do so.

She said: ‘Warden staff are offered voluntary opportunities to receive training and develop skills to lead guided tours for visitors as part of their working day and to administer first aid, as well as to use their language skills.

‘These are not compulsory aspects of their role, and it is the choice of the individual whether they wish to take part.’

They said staff received a range of benefits including a 15 per cent non-contributory pension and a free lunch.

She added: ‘Royal Collection Trust continues to award wardens an annual performance-related pay increase of up to 2.5 per cent, in addition to the cost of living increase, as well as one-off payments to those who have reached the top of their pay scale.’

The Royal Collection said it did not anticipate any interruption to tours in the event of industrial action.

The Royal Collection website says its wardens enhance visitors’ experiences by ‘interpreting the exhibits, buildings and works of art whilst maintaining visitors’ safety and security’.

It says: ‘Whether you are greeting visitors at the start of their tour, carrying out security and baggage checks, or answering questions along the visitor route, you will be part of an impressive and unique experience.’