Union calls for council leaders’ support in appeal for more pay

Scottish’s largest public sector trade union has called on the newly-elected council leaders in North and South Lanarkshire for support in improving the pay offer for local government workers.

Unison called on new leaders attending their first meeting of Cosla, the umbrella body representing Scottish councils, for support in improving the pay offer to local government workers.

These include new North Lanarkshire leader Jordan Linden, of the SNP, and Labour’s Joe Fagan, who was appointed South Lanarkshire leader last month following the council elections.

Unison members gathered outside the meeting of the Cosla convention in Edinburgh to call on the new officers to ensure that pay is at the top of their agenda.

The union is currently balloting its members for strike action in a dispute over pay and have called on Cosla and the Scottish Government to get round the table to resolve the issue.

Union officials have warned that strikes will see school closures and waste piling up on the streets.

Johanna Baxter, who is Unison Scotland’s head of local government, said: “We urge Scotland’s council leaders to join their workforce in a call to the Scottish Government to properly fund councils and to allow meaningful talks on pay to progress.

“We cannot forget who got us through the pandemic – it was local government workers who were educating our children, cleaning our streets, caring for our most vulnerable and burying our dead throughout the pandemic.

“Local government workers keep society running and they all deserve a fair pay rise.”