Thousands of council workers across Scotland have voted to take industrial action which will disrupt schools, early years centres, nurseries and waste and recycling centres across Scotland.
In the largest strike ballot amongst council workers in over a decade, UNISON members in all councils across Scotland overwhelmingly voted to reject the COSLA final pay offer of 2% with nine local authority branches exceeding the required 50% turnout threshold required by the Trade Union Act.
Johanna Baxter, UNISON head of local government said:“COSLA leaders meet on Friday and must put an improved offer on the table if we are to avoid large-scale disruption to council services across Scotland.
“Council workers south of the border yesterday were offered a flat rate uplift of £1925, which for those on the lowest pay equates to a 10.5% increase. You have to wonder why council workers north of the border have only been offered a measly 2% increase when the cost of living continues to spiral. UNISON have been calling for a flat rate payment to help those on lower incomes. Most council workers earn less than £25k per year.
“It is clear now that local government workers have had enough and are prepared to strike in the coming weeks unless we see a sensible offer, from COSLA, on the table on Friday.
“This is the largest strike ballot by local government workers in over a decade and the first-time workers across Scotland have voted to take strike action in these numbers. It really shouldn’t take this for them to receive the recognition, respect and reward that they deserve.”
NHS medical and dental staff will be awarded a 4.5% pay increase for this year backdated to 1 April 2022. This is for all NHS Scotland medical and dental staff, general medical practitioners and general dental practitioners.
This comes following recommendations by the independent Doctors and Dentists Pay Review Body (DDRB) of an annual pay uplift of 4.5% for NHS medical and dental staff. The Scottish Government has accepted this recommendation.
The Scottish Government, BMA Scotland and other relevant stakeholders all participated and provided evidence to the DDRB to allow them to make their independent recommendations.
This year’s award builds on the 3% uplift that was recommended and applied by the Scottish Government in 2021. This means staff have been awarded a 7.5% pay increase over the last two years – but inflation currently stands at over 9% and rising.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “The NHS has faced its biggest challenge during the pandemic and staff have been working tirelessly to continue to provide care while under increased pressure.
“The continued hard work and dedication of staff ensures that the people of Scotland continue to receive world class healthcare as we remobilise NHS services and tackle waiting times.
“This uplift demonstrates that we value all our medical and dental staff and the important contribution they make. It’s crucial that we continue to not only recruit and build our future NHS workforce, but also retain expertise within NHS Scotland.
“This announcement means that our senior medical staff will continue to be the best paid in the UK. This will help ensure that NHS Scotland remains an attractive employment option for all medical and dental staff.”
The 4.5% pay uplift will be applied to all NHS medical and dental staffing grades and will be included in salaries with backdated payments to 1 April 2022 to follow as soon as practical.
Scotland’s health union UNISON is balloting 35000 NHS staff across Scotland to recommend they reject the Scottish government’s pay offer and vote to take strike action in the coming months.
The NHS consultative digital ballot closes on 8 August.
UNISON report that their members are angry and feel they are being taken for granted. UNISON say the Scottish government 5% pay offer is well below the rate of inflation – which is 10% – and it is deeply unfair as it will give those at top of the pay bands a pay rise of over £5,000 per year whilst those on the lower pay bands will get nearer £1000 per year.
This ballot is launched in the midst of a staffing crisis in the NHS, staff turnover is higher than ever, waiting lists are at an all time high and the NHS is facing real challenges to recruit.
There are over 6000 nurse vacancies across Scotland. Staff report to UNISON that they are regularly left in wards working with staffing levels below minimum standards. Staff also report they are constantly worried they make mistakes, or fail to deliver basic patient care. The problems were building long before Covid, the pandemic has only exacerbated the issues.
Wilma Brown, chair of the UNISON Scotland health committee said: “NHS staff have been taken for granted, staff have endured over 10 years of real terms pay cuts only to be told by the Scottish Government that, yet again, they will have to accept a below inflation pay rise.
“NHS staff have family bills to pay, food, energy and petrol prices are rocketing. NHS staff are struggling to afford the price of fuel to get them to work. They need more than praise and platitudes from Government, they need a decent pay rise to support their families.
“A 5% pay increase across the board just doesn’t cut it and the Scottish Government need to understand how angry we are. UNISON are urging UNISON members to vote to reject this pay offer and indicate that they will take the very difficult decision to take industrial action, unless of course the Health Minister improves the offer on the table.”
Public sector workers seem set on a collision course with local and national government over inadequate wage rises …
The General Secretary Designate of teachers union the EIS yesterday urged all of Scotland’s teachers to get active in the campaign to secure a 10% pay rise.
Ms Bradley addressed delegates on the final day of the EIS Annual General Meeting (AGM) at Dundee Caird Hall, and just ahead of a rally in support of the EIS ‘Pay Attention’ Campaign in the Civic Square outside the conference venue.
Addressing the AGM, Ms Bradley said, “The obvious and pressing priority is our Pay Attention campaign. We’ve staked our claim, nailed our colours to the mast … now we need to win.
“Listening to our speakers on the issue of pay over the last few days, I know we’ve got what it takes to win this. To win it because it’s simply unacceptable that teachers and other public sector workers would be expected to bear the burden of yet another crisis that’s been created by the economic vandalism of the Tory government and a Cabinet of millionaires …utterly morally bankrupt and more intent on callous racketeering and profiteering than they are on caring about people and supporting recovery.”
“We can’t allow COSLA to peddle the myth of the One Workforce agenda. Or the Scottish Government to quietly sit there on the side-lines being let off the hook by a raft of egalitarian-sounding rhetoric that’s in truth about pay suppression for teachers and by dint of that the rest of the public sector. We know One Workforce is utter fallacy and I have a sense that the other public sector unions know it as well.”
“If we’re to win a pay rise that protects teachers’ incomes from the worst of the cost of living increases, from every corner of the union, we need to keep building what will be a formidable display of our union strength. We’ve started building this – the press statements, the campaign materials, the branch meetings, the petition, the social media activity, and the demo outside this building later this morning.”
“With full-blown organising, comms and political campaigning… synchronicity of actions with local associations, we’ll be ballot ready, strike ready by October and with a strong industrial action strategy mapped out so that we’re strike ready and strike able.
“From the speeches and applause that we’ve heard this AGM about pay and the other inter-related injustices it sounds like you’re well up for taking this on …and so am I!”
COSLA STATEMENT ON PAY NEGOTIATIONS
COSLA is deeply disappointed that the First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance have refused the request of all Council Leaders to engage in discussions regarding the current settlement for Local Government and its significant impact on our ongoing pay negotiations.
The implications of the Scottish Government’s spending plans for the rest of the parliament are deeply concerning for communities across Scotland and have further increased the already strong likelihood of industrial action in the coming months.
Scottish Government continues to fail to respect the fundamental role Local Government and its workforce has in addressing their own priorities of tackling child poverty, climate change and a stronger economy.
The ‘Resource Spending Review’, published on 31 May, shows that Local Government’s core funding for the next 3 years will remain static at time when inflation and energy costs are soaring.
This “flat-cash” scenario gives no scope to recognising the essential work of our staff, whose expectations, quite rightly, are being influenced by Scottish Government’s decisions in relation to other parts of the public sector. A suggestion that increases in welfare payments will mitigate the cost of living crisis do not recognise that our staff should not have to depend on such payments to make ends meet.
As things stand, the only option available to Councils is yet fewer jobs and cuts to services that are essential to communities everywhere.
COSLA’s Resources Spokesperson Gail Macgregor said: “COSLA, every year, argues for fair funding for Local Government to maintain the essential services our communities rely on.
“No increase in our core funding damages these services and limits the options we have in successfully concluding pay negotiations. Refusal to engage in discussion will only see this continue and our communities will see and feel the difference.”
The Fraser of Allander Institute has recognised the impact on councils: “The local government budget will decline by 7% in real terms between 2022/23 and 2026/27 … the real terms erosion of the funding allocations of local authorities represents the continuation of a longer trend.”
UNISON, Scotland’s largest local government union, will be balloting its members in a dispute over pay. The union is planning targeted strike action – this means select groups of workers will be balloted.
UNISON is campaigning for a pay rise for ALL local government workers.
The groups that will be balloted for strike action are members employed working in schools, who provide services to the running and operation of the school, and all members working in early years and in waste and recycling services. The union is recommending that vote ‘YES’ in favour of strike action.
The ballot will run from 10 June and will close on 26 July. It is vital that all ballots are posted back in good time to ensure we receive them by closing date.
Why are we balloting?
Having consistently worked above and beyond to keep our key services going over the past two years of the pandemic, and with the cost of living spiralling, COSLA’s offer of a 2 per cent pay increase for local government workers is nothing short of an insult.
While 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.
GMB Scotland has attacked “failure at all levels of government” as an industrial action ballot across local government gets underway this morning (Monday 6 June) against the threats of a 2 per cent pay offer and swingeing cuts to local jobs and services.
Nearly 10,000 GMB members in waste and cleansing and schools and early years services will be asked if they back strikes in the face of a pay offer from employer body COSLA amounting to less than £10 a week for staff earning under £25,000 a year.
Joint trade unions in local government wrote to the First Minister and the Finance Secretary last week seeking urgent talks and warned about the consequences for council workers of significantly below inflation pay with the cost of living at a forty-year high.
The ballot, which runs throughout the summer until Tuesday 26 July, also takes place amid dire forecasts for local government budgets following the Scottish Government’s spending review plans.
GMB Scotland Senior Organiser Keir Greenaway warned: “Council workers and the vital services they deliver are firmly in the sights of Kate Forbes’s cuts agenda, and if left unchallenged the lowest paid will pay the highest price in the biggest cost-of-living crisis for 40 years.
“This is what years of failure at all levels of government looks like – a decade of failed austerity, the passing on of cuts to communities, and a meek acceptance of the consequences locally. It’s a far cry from the doorstep applause of virtue-signalling political leaders just two years ago.
“It shows everyone there are no political superheroes and if you want wages that confront soaring inflation then you need to organise and fight for it.
“That’s exactly what our members are doing and unless an improved pay offer is tabled then industrial action looks inevitable.”
RMT launch 3 days of national strike action across the railway network
Over 50,000 railway workers will walkout as part of 3 days of national strike action later this month, in the biggest dispute on the network since 1989.
The union will shut down the country’s railway network on 21st, 23rd and 25th June, due to the inability of the rail employers to come to a negotiated settlement with RMT.
Network Rail and the train operating companies have subjected their staff to multiyear pay freezes and plan to cut thousands of jobs which will make the railways unsafe.
Despite intense talks with the rail bosses, RMT has not been able to secure a pay proposal nor a guarantee of no compulsory redundancies.
In a separate dispute over pensions and job losses, London Underground RMT members will take strike action on June 21st.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “Railway workers have been treated appallingly and despite our best efforts in negotiations, the rail industry with the support of the government has failed to take their concerns seriously.
“We have a cost-of-living crisis, and it is unacceptable for railway workers to either lose their jobs or face another year of a pay freeze when inflation is at 11.1pc and rising.
“Our union will now embark on a sustained campaign of industrial action which will shut down the railway system.
“Rail companies are making at least £500m a year in profits, whilst fat cat rail bosses have been paid millions during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“This unfairness is fuelling our members anger and their determination to win a fair settlement.
“RMT is open to meaningful negotiations with rail bosses and ministers, but they will need to come up with new proposals to prevent months of disruption on our railways.”
A snap poll from the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and Opinium showed the cost of living was the top issue for 75% of the Scottish electorate when casting their ballot in May.
This was followed by 60% citing the NHS as their primary concern, with public services (21%), housing (15%), Brexit (20%) and the environment (19%) all taking voter preference over the constitution (14%).
The news was cited as a ‘wake-up call’ from the Scottish Trades Union Congress leader Roz Foyer, who will host a specific cost of living crisis summit on June 17th with the Poverty Alliance.
Ms Foyer said: “These elections should be a wake-up call to all levels of government – local, Scottish and UK – that workers throughout the country need urgent and sustained help in the face of this brutal attack on their living standards.
“By far and away, with 75% of the electorate in Scotland citing the cost of living crisis as their top concern, with health, housing and the environment their taking preference over the constitution, all incoming councillors must make this their most urgent priority.
“Our local government manifesto made clear we need sustained investment from the Scottish Government to local authorities throughout the country, helping to deliver a real terms pay increase for our public sector workers. This is in addition to delivering on rent freezes, settling equal pay disputes and introducing universal free school meals throughout the country.
“This is the type of real terms action we need from councillors and government throughout Scotland. Our movement, with affiliates currently balloting for industrial action across the country, are not standing idle whilst workers face this material threat to their living conditions.”
P&O staff and other trades unionists will join demonstrations in Dover, Liverpool, and Hull today, condemning P&O for sacking 800 staff.
The company, which is funded by the Dubai Royal Family, stunned workers in a pre-recorded Zoom call, when they informed staff that they were being dismissed and would be replaced by cheap agency labour from abroad.
When workers rightly refused to simply accept this despotic decision, private security staff with handcuffs, believed to have been hired by the company, began to drag workers off the ships.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “It is vital workers from every industry mobilise for the demonstrations on Friday.
“We need to send a message to ruthless employers and the government alike, that when working people are treated so abysmally, there is a militant response from the trade union movement.
“This example of gangster capitalism which our members in P&O have been subjected, is what lies ahead for other workers up and down the country if we do not all take a stand.”
Liverpool: 1.00pm Main Liverpool Port entrance Liverpool L21 1LA
Hull: 12. 00 midday– King George Dock, Hull HU9 5PR
Labour’s Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh said: “This scandalous action is a betrayal of the workers that kept this country stocked throughout the pandemic. Unscrupulous employers cannot be given free rein to sack their workforce in secure jobs and replace with agency staff.
“The Conservative government must not give the green light to this appalling practice and must act to secure the livelihoods of these workers.”
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted: “I’m deeply concerned at P&O announcement – due to the importance to Scotland of the Cairnryan/Larne route obviously, but also the impact on 100s of workers.
“Fire & rehire is an appalling practice & offends the basic principle of fair work. @scotgov will be seeking urgent talks”.
While the UK Government has made no official comment, Defence Minister James Heapey told BBC’s Breakfast that P&O Ferries have ‘behaved disgracefully’ but admitted that the company’s ‘despicable’ fire and rehire action is not something the government could have stopped. He said the government will focus on supporting the workers who have lost their jobs .
Union body calls on ministers to urgently bring forward an employment bill to end fire and rehire style practices
Workers must be reinstated immediately – and P&O Ferries must face serious consequences if they fail to do this, says TUC
What happened to P&O workers “can’t ever be allowed to happen again”, says TUC
The TUC has called for the “scandalous” treatment of P&O workers to be a “turning point” for workers’ rights in the UK.
The union body says ministers must bring forward an employment bill now to stop workers from “being treated like disposable labour”.
The call comes after 800 P&O crew were sacked without notice on Thursday and threatened with handcuffs if they refused to leave their ships.
P&O Ferries’ actions appear to be unlawful. But the TUC says these events show that UK employment law urgently needs strengthening to penalise bad employers.
The union body says ministers must use an employment bill to:
End fire and rehire style practices and stop companies firing at will: P&O has exploited many of the same weaknesses in the law as companies using the punitive fire and rehire tactics. TUC research published during the pandemic revealed that 1 in 11 (9%) of workers have been forced to re-apply for their jobs on inferior terms and conditions. The law should state that no notices of dismissal can be given until consultation has been completed. Employees should be given protection from unfair dismissal from day one in the job.
Increase penalties on companies that break employment law: P&O’s failure to consult staff on their redundancies was unlawful. But companies who flout employment law in this way currently face very low fines and can get away with offering staff measly compensation.
Ban other forms of exploitative practices: More than 1 million workers in the UK are employed on zero-hours contracts and thousands of others are employed in bogus self- employment. The TUC says zero-hours contracts and umbrella companies should be banned.
In addition, the TUC is calling on the government to:
Remove DP World (P&O ferries owner) from any government advisory groups: DP World currently sits on the influential UK Government’s Transport Advisory Group.
Get around the table with unions representing members in the sector to urgently review government contracts with P&O and ensure livelihoods are protected
Reinstate sacked staff
All sacked staff must be reinstated immediately without loss of pay, the TUC is demanding – adding that P&O should face serious consequences.
The union body has warned the government that a “slap on the wrist” from ministers would not be good enough.
And the government must put in place measures to ensure that all future procurement comes with a commitment from companies receiving public money to respect workers’ rights.
TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect at work. But bad bosses can still get away with treating staff like disposable labour.
“What happened at P&O is a national scandal – it can’t ever be allowed to happen again. Enough is enough. This must be turning point for workers’ rights in the UK.
“The government must urgently bring forward an employment bill that strengthens workplace protections and that imposes strong penalties on employers who break the law.
“The prime minister vowed to make Britain the best country in the world to work. He has run out of excuses for failing to deliver on that promise.”
On the need for the government to penalise P&O, Frances added: “P&O has acted appallingly. It must be made an example of.
“A slap on the wrist is not going to cut it.
“If the company refuses to reinstate all of its sacked staff it should face serious consequences.”
Thousands of Glasgow City Council workers will be balloted for a new wave of industrial actions after overwhelmingly supporting strikes against low pay and pay discrimination.
99 per cent of GMB members across home care, Glasgow Life, education, and social work are prepared to take strike action against the council’s attempts to exclude over a fifth of posts included in the 2019 equal pay settlement from future liabilities.
Meanwhile, three-quarters of members in the city’s cleansing services said the fourteen points recently negotiated with the Council Leader for the future of the service and lowest-paid do not go far enough, with four-fifths saying they would be willing to strike again in response.
A statutory industrial action ballot of cleansing workers will now take place in December, while workers in services impacted by the council’s ongoing pay discrimination will commence a ballot in January.
GMB Scotland Organiser Sean Baillie said: “The lowest-paid workers in Glasgow City Council have been undervalued, exploited and ignored, and their anger is reflected in these overwhelming ballot results.
“It sends a clear message to the council and government that there must be change in Glasgow. Scotland’s biggest city has deep and chronic problems, it is blighted by low-pay and discrimination, and its budget has been hammered by years of cuts. That’s not talking Glasgow down, it’s simply stating facts.
“No political party has clean hands in this Glasgow story and politicians at all levels of representation should listen to the voices of these workers because it will need a response from them all.
“But our members aren’t going to stand on ceremony, they understand it’s only through their industrial strength that they can hope to make work better and ultimately make Glasgow better.”
Call comes ahead of protests in Clarks Village today (Saturday)
TUC says Johnny Chen should urgently get around the table with union representing striking workers
The TUC has called on the new CEO of Clarks Shoes Johnny Chen to “get around the table” with union leaders and end the dispute over the company’s controversial use of ‘fire and rehire’ tactics.
The TUC says Johnny Chen should meet urgently with the general secretary of Community Roy Rickhuss to come to a fair agreement.
The call comes ahead of protests today (Saturday). Workers currently on strike, their families and their supporters will march through the iconic Clarks Village to protest the usage of fire-and-rehire by Clarks and ask them to reconsider.
Members of Community union – working at Clarks warehouse in Street, Somerset –have been on strike since October 4th after the company threatened to dismiss them and rehire them on worse terms.
TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Nobody wants to see this dispute drag on – least of all Clarks’ workers.
“We urge the new CEO to urgently get around the table with the general secretary of Community and come to a fair agreement.”
TUC Deputy General Secretary Paul Nowak, who will join the march and protest in Clarks Village today, said: “Generations of families have worked for and contributed to the success of Clarks shoes. All they want is for is staff to be treated with dignity at work.
“A company with Clarks’ proud tradition and history should not be using ‘fire and rehire’ tactics to drive down pay and conditions.”
Community General Secretary Roy Rickhuss said: “Over the past month, workers at Clarks have been overwhelmed by the outpouring support that people from across the country have given them. Fire-and-rehire is cruel and wrong, and everyone is aware of this. Sadly, this has led to no progress with Clarks and their plans will be continuing.
“Clarks is a staple brand on the British high street, with a history dating back over a century. Their roots in their local community go even deeper. There once was a time where Clarks built schools, libraries and theatres for their workers and their families in Somerset. This is a betrayal of their roots, and everything Clarks once stood for.
“We are protesting on Saturday to send a message to Clarks that we stand strong and we will resist these changes at every turn. We do not want to be on strike, and we do not want to be protesting. We urge Clarks to call off the diminishing of terms and conditions and reconsider this move. We remain ready and waiting for productive discussions on how we can succeed together going forward when they are.”
GMB Scotland members employed by Glasgow City Council have voted overwhelmingly in favour of industrial action over their pay, which would see strikes across the city’s cleansing service and schools during the International Climate Conference, COP 26.
Pay talks with COSLA, the umbrella body that represents each of Scotland’s local authorities, have stalled, with the employer refusing to budge from an £850 flat rate offer to all local government workers – far short of the £2,000 pay claim that was submitted by the joint trade unions GMB, Unison & Unite.
Following a ballot of cleansing workers and school support staff across the country, Glasgow is the largest of 5 councils in Scotland that could see strike action as soon as November 1st.
96.9% of returned ballots in Glasgow were in favour of strike action.
GMB Scotland represents close to 900 workers in Glasgow’s refuse & cleansing service and a further 600 across Glasgow schools providing cleaning, janitorial and catering services.
GMB Glasgow Cleansing Convenor Chris Mitchell said:“Over the past 18 months throughout this awful pandemic, essential services across Scotland have been held together by an army of low paid workers.
“We were called key workers, even Covid heroes, but while politicians were happy to applaud us on Thursday nights, they’ve never put their hands in their pockets to pay us properly.
“The eyes of the world will be on Glasgow during COP 26, and our politicians now have a choice – will they fairly reward the frontline workers who got the country through the pandemic, or will they risk embarrassing the city and the country on an international stage?
“The message that our members have sent with this ballot result is clear. We are taking a stand for what we deserve, and we believe the people will stand with us.”
Scotland’s rail network will also be hit by strikes during the UN climate summit in Glasgow, the RMT union confirmed yesterday.
“The current situation is not sustainable; it is dangerous for patients and becoming incredibly difficult for staff.” – Dr John Thomson, Vice President of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine Scotland
A substantial new investment of over £300 million in hospital and community care has been unveiled to help tackle what is anticipated to be the toughest winter the NHS and social care system has ever faced.
The new multi-year funding will support a range of measures to maximise capacity in our hospitals and primary care, reduce delayed discharges, improve pay for social care staff, and ensure those in the community who need support receive effective and responsive care.
The NHS and Care Winter Package of additional funding includes:
Recruiting 1,000 additional NHS staff to support multi-disciplinary working
£40 million for ‘step-down’ care to enable hospital patients to temporarily enter care homes, or receive additional care at home support, with no financial liability to the individual or their family towards the cost of the care home
Over £60 million to maximise the capacity of care at home services
Up to £48 million will be made available to increase the hourly rate of social care staff to match new NHS band 2 staff
£20 million to enhance Multi-Disciplinary Teams, enable more social work assessments to be carried out and support joint working between health and social care
£28 million of additional funding to support primary care
£4.5 million available to Health Boards to attract at least 200 registered nurses from outwith Scotland by March 2022
£4 million to help staff with their practical and emotional needs, including pastoral care and other measures to aid rest and recuperation
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “As the winter period approaches, it is vital that we do all we can to maximise the capacity of the NHS and social care system. That’s why I’m setting out our £300 million NHS and Care Winter Package today.
“We cannot look at the NHS in isolation we must take a whole systems approach and these measures will help alleviate pressure across the NHS and social care.
“This significant new investment will help get people the care they need as quickly as possible this winter. Bolstering the caring workforce by increasing their numbers, providing them with additional support, and increasing the wages of social care staff.
“We’ve previously provided funding to ensure that adult social care staff are paid at least the real living wage. Today we’re going further and our new investment will ensure that adult social care staff who are currently paid the real living wage will get a pay rise of over 5%
“Measures I have announced today will help patients whose discharge has been delayed waiting for care and help get them out of hospital and on to the next stage in their care. This helps the individual by getting them the right care, and helps the wider system by ensuring the hospital capacity is being used by those who need that specialist level of clinical care.
“This £300 million of new funding will also fund increases in social care capacity in the community and in primary care – helping to ease the pressure on unpaid carers.
“Our NHS, social care staff and social work staff have been remarkable throughout the pandemic and today’s additional investment will help support them to deliver care to people across Scotland this winter.”
Meanwhile,the latest Emergency Department performance figures for Scotland published by the Scottish Governmentyesterday for August 2021 show that four-hour performance has deteriorated for the fourth consecutive month, again reaching a record low – while the number of patients staying in a major Emergency Department for 12-hours or more reaches a record high.
In August 2021 there were 117,552 attendances to major Emergency Departments across Scotland.
Data show that four-hour performance reached a new record low, with 75.4% of patients being seen within four-hours. One in four patients stayed in a major Emergency Department for four-hours or more before being admitted, transferred or discharged.
The number of 12-hour stays in August 2021 nearly doubled when compared to July 2021. 1,346 patients stayed in a major Emergency Department for 12-hours or more, compared to 760 in July 2021. This figure increased for the fourth consecutive month and it is the highest number of 12-hour stays since records began.
Data also show that 5,279 patients spent eight hours or more in a major Emergency Department. This is the highest figure since records began. The number of patients delayed by eight-hours or more increased for the fourth consecutive month.
Dr John Thomson, Vice President of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine Scotland, said: “The challenge for health care workers is growing significantly. In Scotland, the army have been called in to assist the ambulance services.
“In Emergency Departments, long stays are rising drastically, and one in four patients are staying in an Emergency Department for more than four-hours. It is extremely worrying. These pressures are likely to mount further, and performance deteriorate even more as we head into winter.
“We are seriously concerned about patient safety. Long stays put patients at risk, particularly vulnerable patients, and especially with covid still present in the community. We urgently need a plan to increase flow throughout the hospital, to reduce exit block, to prevent crowding, and to ensure that patients who need it can quickly be moved into a bed for their care.
“The current situation is not sustainable; it is dangerous for patients and becoming incredibly difficult for staff.
“We welcome this afternoon’s announcement by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Humza Yousaf MSP, including the recruitment of more staff and funding for hospital and community care. We hope that these measures will begin to alleviate pressures across the health system, and in particular reduce ambulance handover delays, long stays in Emergency Departments and exit block in our hospitals.
“However, while we welcome this investment, short-term cash injections do little to resolve long-term problems. We must see a long-term workforce plan that includes measures to retain health workers, particularly Emergency Medicine staff, as well as a long-term strategy for social care.”
Responding to the Scottish Government’s announcement to uplift care workers pay to just over £10 an hour, GMB Scotland Secretary Louise Gilmour said:“If we want to tackle the understaffing crisis in social care then we need to substantially increase the basic rate of pay, and for GMB that mean’s a £15 an hour minimum.
“Many of our frontline services are already being delivered on the back of wages of just under or over £10 an hour, and we know this isn’t nearly enough.
“To transform social care for the people who need it and the people who deliver it, particularly as we roll-out a national care service, then we must go further.”
The Scottish Government may also be facing industrial action from nursing staff over the winter …
NHS pay dispute in Scotland: Royal College of Nursing members to be asked about willingness to take industrial action
RCN members working for NHS Scotland are to be asked what industrial action they would be willing to take in support of their ongoing trade dispute with the Scottish government and NHS employers over pay.
The indicative ballot will open on 12 October and close on 8 November.
Eligible members will receive information on the different forms of industrial action.
The indicative ballot will be run by Civica, the independent scrutineer that organised the consultative ballot earlier this year. Eligible members will receive an email from Civica with a personal link to the online voting site on Tuesday 12 October. Weekly reminder emails will also be sent.
The result of the indicative ballot will not formally authorise industrial action. It will be used to inform the next steps RCN members might take.
Julie Lamberth, Chair of the RCN Scotland Board, said: “Industrial action is always a last resort but the current staffing challenges are causing unacceptable risks to patients and staff. The Scottish government has the opportunity to do the right thing by nursing.
“I would urge all eligible RCN members to seek out the available information on what taking industrial action means and what the implications of doing so might be. We need each member to make up their own mind and have their say in the ballot.”
Colin Poolman, RCN Scotland Director, added: “This is your chance to speak up – for your patients and your colleagues. Many of you rejected the pay offer and you know the link between fair pay and safe staffing.
“This is your opportunity to tell us what action you are prepared to take. To let the Scottish government know that the time to protect patient safety and value the safety critical role of nursing is now.”
GMB Scotland serves notice to councils over “derisory and unacceptable” pay offer
Nearly 10,000 school support and refuse and cleansing workers will be balloted for industrial action from next week, after GMB Scotland reps served statutory notice on councils yesterday against a “derisory” pay offer for 2021.
It follows a consultative ballot of GMB Scotland members across Scottish local government which delivered a 95 per cent rejection of COSLA’s £850 a year increase for staff earning up to £25,000 a year.
The ballot will run from Thursday 16 September to Thursday 7 October, with the prospect of strike action affecting school cleansing, janitorial services, refuse collections, and street sweeping from late October onwards.
GMB Scotland Senior Organiser Drew Duffy said:“COSLA’s offer amounts to little more than £15 a week more for our frontline workers in local government, it is derisory and unacceptable.
“The dither and delay on delivering proper value means they are still mired on pre-pandemic pay rates – there has been no “thank you” for these workers.
“Council and political leaders have said many times during this pandemic they value the work of our members, well it’s time they put their money where their mouth is.
“The threat of disruptive strikes in schools and community services is now likely, and unless COSLA chiefs table an improved offer the blame will lie with them.”
Care workers employed by the charity and social landlord Hanover (Scotland) Housing Association will start a programme of industrial action against their management’s “insulting” 1 per cent pay offer.
Action will involve a work to rule including a ban on all overtime and additional holiday working from 17.00 hours from today (Tuesday 7 September), impacting service delivery in care support, cleansing and domestic assistance across twenty-eight sites.
The dispute is the culmination of months of fruitless negotiations between GMB Scotland representatives and Hanover senior management, who themselves were awarded a 4.5 per cent pay rise in 2020, to substantially lift the pay and conditions of frontline staff.
GMB Scotland organiser Ude Joe-Adigwe said:“The employer’s offer means a real-terms pay cut for staff who have worked throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s totally insulting.
“Our members provide vital care and assistance for some of the most vulnerable people in our communities, and they deserve to be treated so much better than this.
“This is not a decision our members have taken lightly; they are proud of their work, but it’s a shame their employer won’t value frontline staff the way they value themselves.
“This action shows Hanover that their staff are prepared to fight for their dignity and value, and we would hope the employer reconsidered its position.”
