The trade union Unite has criticised Oxfam GB’s “woeful” attitude as a petition called for the charity to honour its improved pay agreement after strike action last year. 

More than 500 Unite members working at Oxfam voted to walk out for 17 days in December but agreed to return to work after two days.

An agreement was mediated by the conciliation service Acas which saw union members and the charity settle on a deal that would mean a 6 per cent pay rise and a one-off payment of £2,300 for most staff.

But earlier this week, Unite members launched a petition calling for the charity to “pay up”.

The petition, which has more than 270 signatures, reads: “We, the signatories to this petition, call on Oxfam to honour its commitment given to its workforce via the 2024 Unite/Acas agreement on pay progression.”

The union said part of the deal with Oxfam was a written agreement to implement pay progression.

“Oxfam has not properly addressed this commitment and it is now clear this commitment won’t be met,” Unite said.

The union said there were ongoing talks around pay progression but progress was slow.

“We have no sign of any deal at this stage and the campaign is aimed at putting pressure on management,” Unite said.

A spokesperson for Unite said: “Oxfam’s attitude is woeful, it made a clear promise to resolve the problems concerning pay progression and has failed to do so.

“Many of our members who are already suffering due to the cost of living crisis are thousands of pounds out of pocket due to the organisation’s failures.”

Oxfam said it is committed to working with the union.

A spokesperson for Oxfam said: “In the last few weeks, we have worked with unions and staff to agree the latest pay package. 

“We continue to meet with our union representatives to establish a plan for a new pay progression model that is affordable and sustainable for an organisation of Oxfam’s complexity and size.

“We are committed to working in close collaboration with both of our established unions on issues that affect our colleagues.”