Glasgow city council reaches pay deal with union to avert fire-and-rehire plan
‘Strong and fair’ proposal to be taken to members’ ballot after previous offer led Unison to walk out of negotiations Glasgow city council has reached an agreement with the trade u
By The Guardian
Glasgow City Council has reached an agreement with Unison over a new pay and grading system, removing the immediate threat of fire-and-rehire notices for thousands of non-teaching staff.
The deal follows a breakdown in negotiations last week, when Unison declined to put an earlier council proposal to its members for a vote.
All three unions representing affected staff — Unison, GMB and Unite — are now expected to ballot members on the revised proposals later in October.
The dispute centres on plans to replace the council’s existing pay and grading structure. The changes are intended to address historical equal pay issues, but could reduce pay for some employees.
More than 23,000 council workers were at risk of being dismissed and offered new contracts under the fire-and-rehire process if an agreement could not be reached.
Under the latest proposal, pay protection for staff facing a reduction would be extended to three years. The council has also agreed not to issue fire-and-rehire notices while the ballot process is under way.
Unison described the proposal as a “strong and fair” offer, but putting it to a ballot does not mean the union is recommending that members accept it.
The ballot is expected to run for about four weeks, with the precise timetable still to be confirmed to members.