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A Derbyshire union has criticised Sky for keeping call centre staff in Derby working during the coronavirus pandemic.

Dave Gorton, area organiser for the Derbyshire branch of Unison, says there is "nothing essential" about work taking place at Firstsource in Pride Park.

"The work being carried out is to alter Sky television packages," he said. "How on earth can this be considered essential? To do this, hundreds of employees are being crammed in a call centre with no attempt to maintain social distancing".

Mr Gorton went on to say: "When thousands of Derbyshire people stood on their doorsteps last week applauding the work done by NHS staff and other key workers during this emergency, I don't believe they were including Sky in their thoughts.

"This is an abuse by a multinational company to maintain its profits, putting ordinary Derbyshire workers and their families at risk. It must be stopped now."

In response, a spokesman for Sky said: "At this difficult time it is critical we’re able to keep people connected, online and informed with the latest news and information – so we are pleased the government recognises our contact centre colleagues and others at Sky as key workers.

"It is vital that a core team continue to work to support our customers, particularly vulnerable ones who we are prioritizing.”

They went on to point out that Sky is not dealing with new sales, installs or upgrades and that they have reduced the numbers of staff in call centres to around 30% of the usual workforce.

They added that remaining workers are subject to "rigorous" social distancing plans and temperature checks in the office, which will be kept "under continuous review for the safety of our colleagues over the coming weeks".