School strikes expected in spring after union vote

GMB workers at Birmingham City Council voted to take industrial action, the union said

Council workers in Birmingham have voted to take industrial action as a row over equal pay claims escalates.

Schools are set to be the first area affected by strikes this spring with exact dates yet to be agreed but other services across the council are also expected to eventually face disruption.

Members of the GMB Union voted 87% in favour of industrial action, the union said, as members pursue equal pay claims against the council.

The city council said it remained "committed to resolving historic equal pay issues, and settling all legitimate claims".

The union, the council’s largest staff union, wanted a timetable for settling the equal pay liability, currently estimated to be more than £867m.

Birmingham City Council faces an equal pay liability estimated at more than £867m

The council is set to sign off its budget on Tuesday as it wrestles with other financial pressures, including the need to make £300m of savings over the next two years.

It recently received confirmation of a £1.25bn bailout loan from the government which was expected to be used, in part, to deal with the equal pay liabilities.

The loan will be repaid through the sale of council assets.

Alice Reynolds, an organiser with the GMB, said the vote marked a “major escalation”.

“We’ve been calling for the council to set a timetable for settling equal pay claims for months," she added.

“Now their inaction means Birmingham faces the threat of industrial action in our schools this spring.”

In October, the authority said it had reached an agreement with unions in a move to stem equal pay claims.

At the time, the Labour leader of the council, John Cotton, said he was delighted to have reached an agreement over a job grading scheme.

However in December the GMB said it would start a ballot for strike action after it called for an urgent timetable to settle the liability but claimed council representatives said "settlement talks would be pushed back".

In a statement on Monday, Birmingham City Council said it had been engaging with the GMB union since 2021 and had begun work on a new approach to job evaluation "to settle Birmingham’s equal pay issues once and for all".

"The council would encourage GMB to explore solutions working together, as it remains committed to resolving historic equal pay issues, and settling all legitimate claims from our employees," it said.