Staff at the V&A Storehouse in east London have voted overwhelmingly to strike in a dispute over what they say are inadequate toilet and hydration breaks. They will join colleagues across V&A sites in London who also voted to strike in a wider dispute over pay, working conditions, and the museum's refusal to seek living wage accreditation.
Dispute over breaks
The trade union Prospect said members at V&A Storehouse, which opened in May 2025, are denied enough time during the day for toilet breaks or hydration. The dispute centres on collections access officers who facilitate the 'order an object' service, a key part of the Storehouse's public access offering. The union is calling for two paid breaks a day, arguing that staff need time to use the toilet and hydrate during a punishing schedule. A collective grievance failed to secure what Prospect described as an 'extremely reasonable request for customary paid breaks' that workers elsewhere in the organisation receive.
Staff welfare concerns
Prospect noted that many staff were recruited from the local community, something the V&A had highlighted publicly, but they are treated worse than colleagues at other sites. One Prospect member told the Guardian: 'We get just one unpaid lunch hour, even though we're on our feet for long hours, interacting with the public and doing a lot of manual labour. Breaks are a welfare issue. The Storehouse is purpose-built for storing objects, but they haven't really thought about the human aspect – how far we have to travel around the building or where the bathrooms are. We've experienced a lot of dehydration, and sometimes people don't even go to the bathroom for the whole day.' They added: 'We've tried every internal procedure possible. We've brought the issue up in one-to-one meetings, we did a petition, we went through a formal grievance, and we've never got proper answers.'
Vote results
At V&A Storehouse, 100% of those voting backed strike action on a turnout of nearly 88%, while 92% supported action short of a strike. Across the V&A, 83% voted for strike action on an 82% turnout, and 95% voted for action short of a strike. The timing of any industrial action has yet to be decided.
Wider dispute
In the wider dispute, Prospect is seeking a minimum 4% pay rise for staff earning above the living wage, time-and-a-half for bank holiday working, accreditation as a London living wage employer within 12 months, and improved food provision at V&A East sites. Mike Clancy, Prospect's general secretary, said: 'This incredible new way of showing off our heritage is being delivered by workers who are denied adequate break time to use the toilet or have a drink of water. Visitors will be appalled to learn that the kinds of working practices unions campaign against in companies like Amazon also exist in an internationally renowned heritage institution.' He said the dispute reflected 'a shocking lack of respect' for staff across the museum.
V&A response
The V&A has been approached for comment. Responding previously to a separate strike ballot by the Public and Commercial Services union, it said all staff had access to water, toilet facilities and regular breaks, and pointed to additional measures introduced during this summer's heatwave, including extra rest breaks, staff rotations and temporary gallery closures. The London living wage is £14.80 an hour. While the V&A has said all its staff are paid at least this rate, some outsourced contractors are not in receipt of the living wage, and the V&A has not become an accredited living wage employer, although it says this will be reviewed this year. V&A Dundee is an accredited living wage employer.
