East Dunbartonshire Council workers vote for strike action
- Published
Members of the GMB who work for East Dunbartonshire Council were balloted on industrial action
Council workers in East Dunbartonshire have voted for strike action over what their union said was the authority's "latest instalment of austerity shame".
Three-quarters of GMB members who took part in a ballot backed strike action, with the turnout for the vote 97%.
The union said it now had a clear legal mandate for workers delivering services such as bin collections, street cleaning and home care to go on strike.
The council said it hoped a strike could be avoided through negotiations.
The GMB claimed the dispute was sparked by the local authority - which is run by a Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition - cutting three days from staff annual leave and reducing redundancy benefits.
'Difficult decisions'
GMB Scotland organiser Hazel Nolan said: "Our members are sick and tired trying to make ends meet while doing more for less and this latest instalment of austerity shame is the final straw.
"The Tories and Lib Dems have rode roughshod over the recognised trade union bargaining forums and played gutter politics for the last six months to try and pick over £1m from the pockets of their employees."
She added: "Against the backdrop of a really unequal pay offer for Scottish local government workers this year, the message to this out-of-touch council could not be clearer: Enough is enough."
Ms Nolan said the GMB would re-enter negotiations with the council "if they recognise the vital contribution our members make to local services and step-back from this shameful cash grab on hard-pressed staff".
East Dunbartonshire joint leader Andrew Polson said: "The joint administration believes that progress can best be achieved by working with the trades unions and through constructive dialogue.
"While recognising the consultative ballots that GMB and other trades unions have run with their membership we hope to continue discussions in a constructive way.
"The council made difficult decisions when setting the 2018/19 budget and recognises the impact of these decisions on employees.
He added: "It is unfortunate that the ballot results have been announced in this way and threat of strike action at this stage is ill-timed."