Strike misery at end as union members defy leaders and accept council pay deal

THE vast majority of local government workers defied their union leaders yesterday and voted to accept a two-year pay deal – effectively ending a series of strikes that had disrupted council services across Scotland.

Leaders of the three unions involved in the dispute – Unison, Unite and the GMB – had recommended that the pay offer be rejected.

But yesterday, it emerged that the 100,000 Unison members, who make up bulk of local government workers, had decided to ignore this advice and accept the deal.

Members of Unite – thought to number about 15,000 to 20,000 council employees – have rejected the pay offer, while the 26,000 GMB workers have yet to make a decision.

But even if the GMB join Unite in saying no the offer, a big majority of local authority staff will have voted to accept the pay deal, weakening any further strike action.

Not only have Unison members ended the damaging period of strike action that disrupted council services over the autumn, they have also dealt a blow to the authority of their leaders.

Cosla, the local government employers organisation, was delighted with the Unison decision, describing it as "good news", both for communities and workers.

The industrial action by the GMB, Unison and Unite started in the late summer after members of all three unions rejected a 2.5 per cent pay deal for each of the next three years.

After two one-day strikes, Cosla came back with a two-year deal, offering a 3 per cent rise in year one and 2.6 per cent in year two.

As far as the union leaderships were concerned, this was still not good enough, and all three recommended a rejection of the offer, which would have paved the way for further strikes through the winter.

But yesterday, when the Unison result was announced, it became clear that its members had had enough of industrial action and wanted to settle the pay claim.

Unison did not reveal the share of the vote for each side but said it was "very close".

Dougie Black, Unison's regional organiser and the lead union negotiator, continued to insist yesterday that the Cosla offer had been "poor".

He said: "This offer is not good, but circumstances have led to our members drawing this dispute to a close. They have made a pragmatic decision based on the perilous state of local government finance, the unsettled wider economy and the fact that Christmas is almost upon us."

Stephanie Herd, who chairs Unison's local government committee, said: "It was clear from employers' statements that they had become entrenched.

"In accepting this offer and improving our members' basic pay until 2010, Unison and the employers have the opportunity to look at ways of tackling low pay in local government without the backdrop of a dispute.

"This should be the start of constructive and meaningful discussions on pay for the future, not simply the end of a hard-fought, bitter dispute."

Councillor Michael Cook, Cosla's spokesman on human resources, said he was pleased that Unison members in Scotland's councils had voted to accept the two-year deal.

"Obviously, I'm pleased with this result," he said. "As employers, we made the best offer we could in all the circumstances. I'm pleased that Unison members have recognised that. This is good news for our workforce and our communities."

A source in the GMB described the Unison result as "disappointing" but said his union would have to wait until next Monday for its ballot.

Jim Farrelly, from Unite, said his members had rejected the offer by 59 per cent to 41 per cent and that turnout had been "extremely healthy". Unite's leaders will be meeting shop stewards soon to decide on their next course of action.