A UNION has launched an industrial action ballot among council workers in schools, nurseries and family centres locally.
The ballot is over a pay dispute for all council workers. The vote will close next month and if staff vote to strike there could be mass action across Scotland – including Dumfries and Galloway – in September.
Last year schools across the region were closed for three days as a result of strike action.
Earlier this year, Unison consulted its entire local government membership (84,000) on COSLA’s pay offer. The workers were made a two-stage offer which would operate over an 18-month period. It gives a 2.2 per cent increase for the first six months and an additional 2 per cent for a further 12 months of the deal, ending in September next year.
The union’s members voted overwhelmingly to reject this. A revised offer of 3.2 per cent has since been rejected.
Unison Scotland head of local government, David O’Connor said: “Cosla’s offer falls short of UNISON’s pay claim, it is also less than the offer made to the lowest paid local government staff south of the border. Nor does this offer address the impact of below inflation pay settlement that has seen the value of our members pay drop by 25 per cent over the past 14 years.”
Jan Andrews, secretary of the Dumfries and Galloway Unison branch, added: “Our members are sick to the back teeth of years and years of poor pay deals, to the extent many are struggling to get by financially and they don’t know how much more they can take.
“They went on strike last year shutting down all schools in Dumfries and Galloway and will be prepared to do the same again if the pay offer is not improved.”
Meanwhile, Cosla leaders have called for a meeting with the Scottish
Government to help solve the pay dispute for council staff.
This has been regarded by the union as the right approach.
Mr O’Connor added: “The vast bulk of council funding comes from the Scottish Government, and it’s responsible for the council tax freeze, which prevents local authorities from raising further funds.
“Cosla leaders’ decision to request a joint meeting with government is to be welcomed. Unison has been calling for this to happen for months. It appears the threat of rubbish piling up in the streets and school closures is the only thing Cosla and the government will listen to. But they both need to show a commitment to solve this dispute before industrial action is suspended.”
