Migrant workers at an elite Mayfair club owned by a Tory donor are being balloted for strike action.

Union reps today announced kitchen porters at 5 Hertford Street will vote on whether to walk out for the £10.55 London living wage and "proper sick pay."

According to the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB), the workers earn just £9 per hour – above the legal minimum but "far below" the recommended rate – and are on statutory minimum sick pay.

Meanwhile the club's membership fees are reputedly £1,500 a year and its bohemian-style cocktail bar LouLou's includes a stuffed giraffe.

In a hard-hitting statement tonight, the club hit back – claiming there would be no legal basis for strike action, its pay was "well above legal requirements" and the IWGB represents fewer than 1 in 20 of its staff.

The IWGB declined to say how many of the club's workers were its members.

Owned by Robin Birley – a former UKIP donor who gave £20,000 to Boris Johnson's leadership campaign in June – the club is renowned as one of the most secretive in London.

It patrons are said to include Mick Jagger, Leonardo DiCaprio and Prince William.

IWGB President Henry Chango Lopez said: “If Robin Birley can donate hundreds of thousands of pounds to UKIP and Boris Johnson , then he has enough money to pay his kitchen porters the London Living Wage and give them proper sick pay.

"It's disgraceful that in a restaurant that is attended by some of the richest people in the world, workers have to work when they are ill because they can't afford to take time off.

"Now Birley has a choice, he can either pay up, or be forced to serve his meals on dirty dishes because those that clean them are out on strike."

A spokesman for the club said: "5 Hertford Street is surprised to hear about the IWGB’s apparent intention to hold a strike ballot.

"The union has not undertaken the statutory steps necessary to become a recognised trade union at our club, and therefore is not in a position legally to hold a strike ballot.

"Fewer than 5% of our members of staff are members of this union, and it is therefore un-representative of the vast majority of our staff’s views and interests.

"5 Hertford Street has some of the highest pay rates and benefits packages in the industry, well above legal requirements.

"And we are constantly seeking to do everything we can to retain our high quality, hard-working members of staff."

The ballot closes on November 4.

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