Ex-leader in equal pay blast

FORMER council leader Frank McAveety has called on political opponents to stop “flag waving” and get behind the negotiations to resolve equal pay claims.

The Labour party was in power when women were shortchanged over pay and conditions.

But Mr McAveety said the council must move on.

GLASGOW’S leader is in “dereliction of duty” over equal pay, claims the man who used to do her job.

Former leader of Glasgow City Council Frank McAveety said it is time to set the record straight over the challenges facing the authority and then put “flag waving” to bed.

Mr McAveety was council leader for two years until May 2017 when the SNP’s Susan Aitken took control.

As the city looks to continue negotiations to resolve equal pay inequality, Mr McAveety claims the former Labour administration is being unfairly lambasted for the challenges now facing Glasgow.

An initial equal pay claim should have been settled in 2006 but a new Workplace Pay and Benefits Review (WPBR) merely continued the inequality between male and female colleagues.

It has been said that the equal pay issue facing Glasgow now is a Labour problem being left for the SNP to solve.

But Mr McAveety believes the finger pointing must end.

The Glasgow Labour party leader said: “All parties agreed in 2006 that the council was going to try to deal with historic equal pay.

“That included at that time SNP and Lib Dem councillors, so decisions taken then were approved by all the council.

“The idea it is just a Labour problem when every political party supported the introduction of the WBPR is not right.

“There was never any contrary positions or motions put by the main opposition parties.

“And all of a sudden it becomes “Let’s make this a party political issue.” Well, I don’t think it is a party political issue.

“It’s a justice issue to make sure those women get a settlement that they feel is meaningful because historically they have not felt listened to.”

Ms Aitken, however, came back swinging at the claim. She said: “Let’s not rewrite history. Labour are the architects of this scheme.

“They created it when they absolutely dominated this city, spent a decade defending it and are now trying to disown it. Meanwhile, my administration is fixing it.

“One member of the Labour group said this week he’s been haunted by his decision since 2006.

“At what stage in the subsequent decade did he seek to encourage his colleagues to do something about it?”

Ms Aitken has now said that the bill for payments to around 8000 women will run to the hundreds of millions, a figure previously suggested but not confirmed by council bosses.

The SNP leader also said that, following discussions with Scottish Government Finance Secretary Derek Mackay, the Government would not step in to assist the council in picking up the tab.

But Mr McAveety said he strongly contests that position.

He said: “We need to reach a settlement and I do believe the Scottish Government has a responsibility to help fund that.

“I profoundly disagree with the leader in that matter.

“It’s a dereliction of duty on the part of the leader to be so blasé on that matter when actually local and central government have been aware for 30 years of the challenges of dealing with the equal pay act and the whole issue around adopting workplace benefit