Glasgow women protest in equal pay dispute

LONDON: Hundreds of schools and nurseries in Glasgow are closed and home care services faced disruption as council workers staged one of Britain’s biggest strikes over equal pay.

The walkout – which involves more than 8,000 workers – started at 7am on Tuesday and follows years of legal disputes between unions and Glasgow City Council (GCC) over claims that staff in female-dominated roles, such as cleaning, were underpaid.

Some women claim they made up to £3-an-hour less than those in male-dominated roles, such as bin collections. Some women are said to have been paid up to £4,000-ayear less than male counterparts. Thousands of female workers are proceeding with claims against the council following a court of session ruling last year.

Members of the GMB and Unison unions are striking amid a “lack of progress” on equal pay claims from thousands of female workers, the unions said.

The council said the 48-hour industrial action over equal pay was unnecessary and that it hoped to reach a settlement in the coming months with payouts to begin in the next inancial year.

Unions said they were concerned action could be taken against refuse and street-cleaning workers if they declined to cross picket lines.

The GCC said all early year establishments, additional support for learning schools and mainstream primary schools will close on both days, though all mainstream secondary schools will remain open.

Home care services for around 6,000 people are affected by the strike which is one of the biggest peacetime industrial actions seen in Glasgow.