Second wave of strike action in Edinburgh starts 6 September—suspended

Photo by Craig Maclean Photography

This action is suspended—see the latest on the pay dispute

Members in Waste and Cleansing will walk out again from Tuesday 6 to Tuesday 13 September as the dispute over local government pay in Scotland continues.

Schools workers in Edinburgh are not on strike.

Striking members should read the strike FAQ and add any questions at the bottom.

Pickets remain as before. See picket locations.

Donate to the strike fund to support these workers.

Latest offer

Pay

The latest offer remains a 5% pay rise, with an additional one-off payment for some workers to bring all workers’ uplift to £1,925, based on a 37-hour week. This extra payment is know as a ‘non consolidated’ rise, as it is not an ongoing pay rise.

Workers on less than £20,500 to receive a £2,000 pay rise. The Scottish Local Government Living Wage increased to £10.50, from £9.78.

Extras

  • Removal of SSSC (Scottish Social Services Council) fees for all.
  • One extra day annual leave.

These have been locked in.

Funding the offer

The Scottish Government has released £200m to fund this. It has stated that this is all that is available.

Response to the offer

Unite have rejected the offer.

GMB and Unison will ballot their members.

Unite’s local government committee rejected outright. Unite’s stance is that

  • the pay pot offered is not enough
  • each and every member deserves a pay rise
  • 85% of local government workers are on less than £40,000
  • any deal must be implemented into pay for all—one-off sweeteners don’t meet the on-going cost of living challenges
  • COSLA and the Scottish Government must explore all angles to make a consolidated pay increase for all workers.

Next wave of strikes across Scotland

Waste and cleansing

Unite members in waste and cleansing will strike from 6 to 13 September in 20 councils across Scotland.

Unison and GMB members in waste and cleansing will strike from 7 to 10 September. Unison in 9 councils and GMB in 16.

Schools

Unite, Unison and GMB members in schools will strike from 6 to 8 September. Unite in 7 councilsnot including Edinburgh, Unison in 9 and GMB in 2.

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