UNISON members in Glasgow City Council have voted overwhelmingly for strike action in their ongoing dispute over equal pay compensation payments.
Some 96% of Unison members voted in favour of the strike action, on a turnout of 52.5%. Just under 9000 workers were balloted.
Earlier this week GMB workers also voted to walk out, while Unite the union will be balloting its members on industrial action on 14 March.
The dispute has its roots in a £500 million settlement agreed with council staff in 2019, for which a new pay and grading system was required to account for the many workers – primarily women – subject to unfair pay.
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Despite pay claims up until March 2018 being settled by the 2019 deal, there are still new claims covering earlier periods, coupled with demands of interim payments for after 2018. Approximately 18,000 claimants are waiting on a settlement for post-2018 claims, while roughly 5,500 new claims for the pre-2018 period have been made.
The joint legal team for the claimants – comprised of Action4Equality, Unison, GMB and Unite – met with council lawyers last week.
This week, Unison announced that the council has changed its position and stated that the existing 2019 deal will now be applied to new claims. While the union has welcomed this progress, there has reportedly been no progress on the matter of interim payments, which are now the main focus of the dispute.
Commenting, Unison branch depute chair Lyn Marie O’Hara said: "This is a huge vote for action and a clear message to the council to resolve the dispute.
“The Unison branch will now request authorisation for strike action from our NEC and be liaising with our sister trade unions on the next steps in the industrial dispute.
“The trade unions will also continue to receive regular updates from the claimants joint legal team on the current negotiations with the council lawyers. The council should now listen."
GMB organiser Sean Baillie also commented: “Our members need equal pay justice and an end to the discriminatory pay and grading system that remains in place.
“The council’s liabilities are growing every working hour of every working day and the cost will likely run into the hundreds of millions yet again, so the situation is critical for our members, the services they deliver and the city’s finances.”
Unite industrial officer Wendy Dunsmore added: “It’s an unacceptable situation and that’s why we are holding a ballot for industrial action.
“Many of these workers don’t have the time to wait months and years for their money. There is a cost of living crisis with inflation soaring.”
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A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: “We’ll await the details from the union. However, it remains disappointing that they balloted members when we have been clear we are ready to make offers on new claims.
“It was agreed with unions that new claims should be settled before we discuss the period after 2018.
“Delays to the implementation of a new pay and grading structure, caused by the pandemic, were also agreed — unions specifically didn’t want members taking part in evaluation interviews during that period.”
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