Category: Cosla Pay Offer

Vote Yes! Vote Now!

Having consistently worked above and beyond to keep our key services going over the past 2 years of the pandemic, and with the cost of living spiraling, COSLA’s offer of a 2% increase is nothing short of an insult.

Whilst politicians have raced to praise your efforts their warm words have not been matched by action.

Earlier this year we ran an online consultation to see what you and other local government members thought of the employers’ 2022 pay offer.  It was no surprise that the overwhelming majority of you voted to reject the offer and indicated your willingness to take action to achieve a better deal. 

Nothing has changed since then and we now need you to vote yes to take strike action to remind your employers exactly how you feel.

This offer is derisory.  It is less than the Scottish Public Sector Pay policy, falls far short of our pay claim and is significantly below current levels of inflation.  It will exacerbate the gap between those on the lowest and those on the highest rates of pay.  And it is in sharp contrast to the 5.2% increase that Councillors themselves have just received from 1st April 2022.

You are worth so much more!

Your vote is vital.  The employers aren’t going to rethink unless we stand firm together. Vote yes to strike action to remind your employers that you deserve better.

Johanna Baxter, UNISON Scotland Head of Local Government

Mark Ferguson, UNISON Scotland Chair of Local Government

SJC Pay Supplementary material

Response from Kate Forbes to our request for a meeting

The Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Kate Forbes, has responded to our request for a meeting with herself, the First Minister and COSLA to discuss LG finance and implications for pay – her response is attached for your information.  In short she has stated that she is not prepared to meet with us. You will be as appalled by this as we are.  We have issued the attached press release in response.

Kate Forbes response to trade-unions

UNISON Scotland Media release

UNISON to ballot 25,000 school staff and waste and recycling workers for strike over pay tomorrow, after Kate Forbes refuses offer of last-ditch talks

UNISON will start an industrial action ballot tomorrow (Friday 10 June) for 25,000 local government workers in schools, early years, waste and recycling across Scotland. The ballot will take 7 weeks and will close on 26 July. 

UNISON are recommending the workforce vote yes to strike action as the only way left to move the employer’s position.  They intend to shut schools across Scotland when children return after the school summer break.

In a last-ditch attempt to avert industrial action processes UNISON wrote to the First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, and Minister of Finance Kate Forbes, on 1 June to ask that they meet with the trade unions to discuss the funding for local authorities to improve the pay offer.

Kate Forbes has written to UNISON today and said ‘it would not be appropriate to interfere in these negotiations, given their devolved nature’ and that ‘it is therefore for you to negotiate with COSLA and ‘respectfully declined the tripartite meeting being proposed by COSLA’.

Johanna Baxter, UNISON Scotland head of local government said: “Local government workers have been offered a miserly 2%.  With inflation at a 40 year high this goes nowhere near compensating them for the cost-of-living crisis or the loss in the value of their pay following real terms pay cuts over a decade of austerity. This comes on the back of the Scottish government announcing cuts to public services that Margaret Thatcher would be proud of, in their recent spending review.” “The fact they will not sit down with COSLA and the trade unions to try and find a solution is a kick in the teeth to all local government workers. They have forgotten already who was educating our children, cleaning our communities, caring for our vulnerable and burying our dead throughout the pandemic. Local government workers keep society running. We have no option left and will ballot 25,000 school, nursery and waste and recycling workers tomorrow.”

Important Information – Local Government Pay Briefing

Please Read

UNISON Stirling Branch Local Government Pay Briefing

UNISON has sent notice to Stirling Council, and all other local authorities of its intent to ballot for industrial action over pay and the failure to make an acceptable pay offer for this year.

Our pay claim was submitted in February in good time for an offer to be made in time for the implementation date of 1st April.

Only one offer has been made thus far, despite our rejection. The 2% offered to all employees, absolutely ignoring that inflation is currently sitting at 9% and expected to increase further. This is a pay cut in real terms.

There is no recognition of the cost of living crisis affecting everyone and certainly no recognition of the work you have and continue to do throughout the pandemic. Supporting the public and ensuring the people who rely on our services were supported through one of the hardest times in their lives.

This offer of 2% does not even come close to the Scottish Government Pay Policy, even so inflation has run rampant since that was developed.

Remember councillors were given a 5.2% increase to their annual allowance.

We are conducting what is deemed a disaggregated ballot, with individual ballots being held in each local authority at the same time with the same groups of workers.

We will be balloting all Waste, School Staff and Early Years Staff.

These groups of workers have been selected to have the maximum effect disrupting services to bring the employer back round the table. Scottish Government funds councils and we need them to increase funding to councils so we also have to get their attention.

We are asking all Waste, School and Early Years’ staff to look out for your ballot paper in the post, it will be in a blue envelope.

It is vitally important that you complete it and post it in the envelope provided.

Trade unions are required by law to deliver a 50% response rate before we can take any action.

If we do not deliver 50% our members are showing our employers and the Scottish Government that they do not care about pay and our employers will know that we cannot deliver and our strength to negotiate decent pay for you will be gone. Poor pay will be a thing of the future.

By voting in the ballot and returning your paper you will be influencing your own pay and the pay of every other council worker for years to come

Every single ballot counts, even if you don’t want to support the action it is essential you return your ballot paper. We do not want to be short of the 50% by one vote.

Staff not included in this ballot it is essential that your fellow workers feel supported, they are voting on taking action for all our pay.

We need you to promote this action and encourage those being balloted to return their papers.

If you are in the position to, we ask you to consider donating to our strike fund, to ensure that workers taking action on behalf of all of us are not out of pocket.

Remember it is time for every one of us to step up. To ensure that both Councils and Scottish Government

  • Recognise, our workforce
  • Respect the work you do in supporting our communities
  • Reward you for the work you do

As ever we welcome questions and comments from everyone

Please feel free to get in touch e-mail address  thomsonl34s@stirling.gov.u