UNISON Scotland has received a message of unwavering solidarity from Andrea Bradley, the General Secretary of the EIS Union.
In this message, she extends heartfelt support to our dedicated UNISON members within the Education sector who have taken a courageous stand for fair pay on behalf of all local government workers.
Highlighting the invaluable contributions of education workers to the growth and development of young minds and our society as a whole, Andrea Bradley emphasises the urgent need to address the undervaluation of their work:
Solidarity from EIS
“The EIS stands in full solidarity with UNISON members within Education who have been forced to take strike action in the just fight for fair pay.
Education is a vital public service within which workers are contributing massively to young people’s learning, care and development for the benefit of our whole society.
Yet we continue to see that work being undervalued by those who hold the purse-strings. All power to your members for their courage in standing up for themselves, their colleagues and their families… and for the future of Scottish Education. All school staff deserve to be paid fairly for the essential work that they do. No ifs, no buts, no maybes. Solidarity from the EIS!”
– Andrea Bradley, EIS General Secretary
COSLA’s Resources Spokesperson Councillor Katie Hagmann responded yesterday: “I am extremely disappointed with the news from UNISON today that not only are they recommending rejection of this half a billion pay package – they are putting our communities, especially our children and young people, through the turmoil and mayhem of strikes next week with their actions.
“We have met every ask of our Trade Union colleagues throughout these negotiations and this best and final offer was made on the basis that strikes would be suspended.
“We absolutely value all our Local Government Workforce and throughout these negotiations Council Leaders have re-iterated the value we place on the Workforce and the work that they do.
“It is totally unacceptable that with such a significant offer on the table that our Trade Union colleagues are putting our communities and our young people through the turmoil of strikes.
“It must be reiterated that we are talking about a pay package worth over £445 million, specifically targeted at the lower end of our workforce. A pay package which not only compares well to other sectors but recognises the cost-of-living pressures on our workforce and which would mean the lowest paid would see an in-year uplift of over £2000 or just under 10%.
“This would mean that a pupil support assistant currently earning £22,000 would receive a £2006 pay increase and a new salary of £24.000. This is an additional £748 from the offer in April.”
COSLA offer condemned as ‘far too little, far too late’
School strikes likely to go aheadthis month
UNISON Scotland’s local government committee met yesterday morning (Thursday) and have voted unanimously to reject Cosla’s revised offer outright, which was sent to the union on Wednesday evening.
The union say that unless a significantly improved offer is received by 5pm on Wednesday (September 20th), schools strikes planned for September 26th 27th and 28th will go ahead.
UNISON have written to Cosla to say that “the revision is miniscule and as a result the unanimous decision of our committee is that we reject this offer outright and proceed with strike action on the dates already notified.”
The letter to Cosla points out that the revised offer represents an increase on the previous offer of only 0.17%. For those on the lowest pay the revised offer represents an increase of only £0.01 per hour, effective from 1st Jan 2024. Those working full-time and earning £25K or above are being offered no increase on the previous offer, which has already been rejected.
UNISON Scotland head of local government, Johanna Baxter said: “It is deeply disappointing that it has taken COSLA five months since our members rejected the initial offer to present such insignificant changes.
“We have made very clear that COSLA must put forward a significantly improved offer to avert mass school strikes. Members of our Local Government Committee this morning described this offer as insulting.
“It is staggering that COSLA have still not approached, and continue to refuse to approach, the Scottish Government for additional funding to make a meaningful improvement to the pay offer.
“Given the state of local authority budgets we believe this to be a dereliction of the duty to stand up for local government and fight for the funding needed to both properly reward the local government workforce and keep our public services running.”
UNISON Scotland chair of UNISON Scotland local government committee, Mark Ferguson said: “The strike mandate we have is the strongest show of strength by our members in decades – their resolve to fight for the decent pay rise they, and all their colleagues across local government, so richly deserve is clear.”
GMB Scotland rejects latest council pay offer as school staff prepare to strike
GMB Scotland has rejected the latest pay offer to council workers and warned time is running out to avert strikes threatening to disrupt schools this month.
The offer from Cosla, representing local authorities, was dismissed as “far too little, far too late” to avert three days of strike action by support staff in schools and early years education.
The union, which represents more than 21,000 workers across Scotland’s 32 councils, said strikes involving cleaning, janitorial, catering and pupil support will now go ahead without a revised offer and urged ministers to intervene.
Keir Greenaway, GMB Scotland senior organiser in public services, said: “The latest offer is no significant improvement on the previous offer that was overwhelmingly rejected.
“Strike action is not something our members ever take lightly but, after a long, frustrating process, they have been left with no choice.
“This offer, like the previous offer, does not come close to maintaining the value of their wages as prices rise. It is far too little and far too late.
“Why should local authority workers in Scotland be offered less than in England? Why should they be asked to accept the unacceptable?
“If Cosla does not have the resource or the will to properly protect the wages of some of the country’s most important workers then the Scottish Government needs to intervene and intervene urgently.”
Members of GMB Scotland and sister trade union UNISON plan to strike in schools in most council areas in a fortnight on Tuesday 26th of September and the following two days.
Earlier this month, the union suspended strike action planned in schools across Scotland to agree concerted action with the other unions.
Industrial action involving school staff not including teachers was suspended in Aberdeen, Clackmannanshire, Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar, Dundee, East Dunbartonshire, Falkirk, Glasgow, Orkney, Renfrewshire and South Ayrshire.
UNITE is still to announce a decision on the COSLA pay offer but it’s members are also likely to reject the deal.
COSLA RESPONSE ON REVISED PAY OFFER REJECTION
COSLA’s Resources Spokesperson Councillor Katie Hagmann responded yesterday: “I am doubly disappointed today, firstly with the rejection itself, but perhaps more importantly, with the fact that they did not take the revised offer to their membership for consideration.
“We have continued to conduct these negotiations in good faith and kept communication channels open at all times.
“We absolutely value all our Local Government Workforce and throughout these negotiations Council Leaders have re-iterated the value we place on the Workforce and the work that they do.
“That is why we enhanced an already strong offer yesterday, with Council Leaders going to the absolute limits of what Local Government can afford. The simple fact of the matter is that we have no more money available for pay without real cuts to jobs and services.
“It must be remembered that we are talking about a pay package worth over £440 million, specifically targeted at the lower end of our workforce. A pay package which not only compares well to other sectors but recognises the cost-of-living pressures on our workforce and which would mean the lowest paid would see a 21% increase in their pay over a two-year period.
“Whichever way you cut it, this is a very strong offer in the financial climate we find ourselves. We have a duty to ensure that services are sustainable within the funding for pay we have available.
“I am disappointed with today’s rejection . However, we will continue to engage as positively as we can with the Trade Unions as strike action is in nobody’s interests.”
The EIS recently announced an escalation of its action to include targeted strike action in schools within the constituencies of the First Minister, Deputy First Minster, Cabinet Secretary for Education, and COSLA Resources Spokesperson, Councillor Katie Hagmann.
As the Scottish Green Party is a party of the Scottish Government, part of its Education Spokesperson’s (Ross Greer) regional constituency has also been targeted – the part of Clydebank and Milngavie constituency that lies within the East Dunbartonshire Council area.
There will be two days of national strike action for all members on Tuesday 28th February and Wednesday 1 March and a further 20 days of rolling strike action between 13 March and 21 April 2023.
National Strike Days
Date
Local Associations
Tuesday 28th February
All Local Associations
Wednesday 1st March
All Local Associations
Targeted Strikes
Date
Constituencies
7th – 9th March
Glasgow Southside, Dunfermline, Perthshire North, the part of Clydebank and Milngavie constituency that lies within the East Dunbartonshire Council area and Mid Galloway & Wigtown West
EIS to escalate strikes to include targeted action
YESTERDAY, 7 February, marked one whole year since Scottish teaching unions submitted their pay claim for 2022-23 via the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT).
A year on, that pay claim remains unsettled and teachers across the country are engaged in a programme of industrial action in pursuit of a fair pay settlement.
As a result, the EIS has announced an escalation of its action to include targeted strike action in schools within the constituencies of key decision makers within the Scottish Government and COSLA.
EIS Office Bearers and other senior EIS Representatives took part in photo calls outside the Scottish Government and COSLA HQ in Edinburgh yesterday, delivering Birthday cards to mark the 1st anniversary of the teachers’ pay claim being submitted.
Commenting, EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley said, “It is deeply regrettable that the continuing inaction, obfuscation and spin from the Scottish Government and COSLA on teachers’ pay has led to an escalation of our programme of strike action.
“It has now been a year since our pay claim was submitted, and teachers should have had their pay rise in their pay packet last April. Instead, the Scottish Government and COSLA initially offered a pathetic 2% pay settlement – at a time when inflation was nearly four times that amount.
“Since then, the Scottish Government and COSLA have dithered, delayed and dragged their feet while the cost of living has continued to soar.”
Ms Bradley added, “The latest offer, for a well-below inflation 5%, has now been kicking around for six months and has been rejected by Scotland’s teachers twice. Our members have already taken part in three days of national strike action, and a further 16-days of rolling action across the country.
“The response from the Scottish Government and COSLA has been, essentially, nil – and this now has forced an escalation in our action. The offer of a 9% real-terms pay cut, which is what is on the table, will never be acceptable.”
The escalation of action means that, in addition to 2 days of national strike action already called for 28th February and 1st March, and a 20 further days of rolling strikes across all local authority areas from 13th March until 21st April, there will be targeted action in the constituencies of the First Minister, Deputy First Minster, Cabinet Secretary for Education, and COSLA Resources Spokesperson, Councillor Katie Hagmann.
Scottish Greens Education Spokesperson Ross Greer’s East Dunbartonshire constituency area will also be targeted.
EIS members in four of these five areas will be called out on three consecutive days from Wednesday, 22nd February – Friday, 24th February inclusive.
All five areas will be targeted for a further three days of action from Tuesday, 7th March. Precise details of the schools involved in this action on the relevant dates will be published shortly.
Further periods of targeted action are likely, if no new pay offer is forthcoming.
Trinity Academy pupil Sandy Boyd is one of the leading lights behind today’s Edinburgh Youth Climate Strike, which is expected to attract around 10,000 people onto the capital’s streets to demand action on climate change.
Sandy met councillors at the City Chambers yesterday to explain the reasons for the youth action and to encouraged the ‘auld yins’ to follow the lead of young people across the globe.
School strike actions will take place in 150 countries today and are the latest – and likely to be the biggest so far – in a series of actions first initiated by Swedish schoolgirl Greta Thunberg last year.
Young people will be central to the development of plans to make Edinburgh carbon neutral by 2030, senior councillors have pledged.
Depute Leader (and former youth worker) Cammy Day and SNP Councillor Ellie Bird, who is Edinburgh’s ‘young people’s tsar’, are joint leaders of the city council during the absence of council leader Cllr Adam McVey. The Forth councillors invited Sandy to meet them in the City Chambers yesterday.In a ‘positive and productive’ discussion, they agreed that young people would be at the core of the city’s climate change strategy.Cllr Day said: “It was really encouraging to meet Sandy today and we definitely see this as the start of a meaningful dialogue to ensure that young people and their ideas are absolutely at the heart of our plans for a carbon neutral city by 2030.“He shared a number of very useful ideas on how we can best communicate with our younger citizens, such as organising meetings outwith school hours and avoiding rigid agendas in favour of inviting participants to set the themes and discussion topics themselves.”Cllr Bird said: “We’re working with partners to pull together plans for a major climate conference in Edinburgh in early 2020 and at our meeting today we committed to engage fully with Sandy and his peers so that they’re integral to this event. “We’re looking forward to many more opportunities to hear directly from and work closely with the young people of this city. Their voices are critical to any debate about the future of the planet.”The Forth councillors are among a number of city councillors who plan to attend today’s march in the city centre.Cllr Day added: “I think we and all our partners, including Police Scotland, fully support the right of residents of all ages to make their voices heard peacefully.I’m looking forward to a positive, safe and good-natured event that will go down in our city’s history books for all the right reasons.”Cllr Bird added: “Sandy and his group are to be congratulated for everything they’re doing to get this vital issue high up on the news agenda and I wish them all the best for a great turnout.”
TUC conference yesterday unanimously passed a motion to support the school student Global Climate Strike on 20th September and has called on TUC affiliate Unions to organise a 30 minute work day campaign action to coincide with the school students strike on 20th September.Continue reading TUC backs Global Climate Strike on 20th September
