UNION leaders have announced strike action that could close schools in the First Minister's local area for two weeks.
Unison hopes targeting John Swinney’s constituency will “bring home to him the importance of finding a fair settlement” to the council pay dispute.
The union has said it has given notice to Perth and Kinross Council for strike action by members in schools and early years centres.
READ MORE: STUC withdraws support for National Care Service
The walkout is expected to begin on October 21 and impact more than 50 schools.
It comes after the union voted against the latest pay offer from local government umbrella body Cosla, which will see staff receive an increase of either 67p an hour or 3.6%, whichever is higher.
Council leaders in Scotland have already voted to impose the deal despite Unison’s opposition, saying that two other unions – GMB and Unite – have accepted it.
However, Unison said that its members are angry that the pay deal they have been offered lags behind that of other public services – with nurses and other NHS staff being given a 5.5% wage hike.
The strike action could see schools and early years centres in Perth and Kinross closed for two weeks from October 21.
READ MORE: Reports of 'mass closures' of TGI Fridays across UK sparks concerns from union
The union added that with the action taking place immediately after the October holiday, schools could be closed to youngsters for four weeks in total.
Stuart Hope, Unison’s Perth and Kinross branch secretary, urged the First Minister to talk to union members on the picket line “to hear how undervalued council staff in his constituency feel”.
Hope said: “Taking action like this is the last thing school and early years staff want to do.
“Employees are taking this first stand on behalf of all local government workers because they’ve seen a decade of pay cuts and they see other sectors being offered deals of greater value.”
He added: “A fair pay deal should have been in place from April 1 but six months later it’s still not been agreed.
“Instead, the employer has imposed a wage rise rejected by a majority of the workers Unison represents. Yet again local government staff are being forced to strike to simply get fair pay.
“The Scottish Government needs to understand that council staff need more than platitudes. Ministers must tackle the severe decline in local government funding and start to value councils and their dedicated workforce as they do other areas of public services.”
The Scottish Government and Cosla have been contacted for comment.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel