Council bin strikes at Glasgow COP26 suspended after pay offer
- Published
Threatened bins strikes during the COP26 climate summit have been called off after a £48m offer to unions.
The planned walk out by council staff in Glasgow and across Scotland is now suspended while unions consult members.
Local authority body Cosla proposed a pay rise of 5.8% for the lowest paid staff as part of a £1,062 increase for all staff earning below £25,000.
The deal is understood to involve £30m from the Scottish government and £18.5m from local government.
Members of GMB, Unison and Unite unions have been asked to vote on whether to accept the offer.
GMB had planned a week-long strike beginning for cleansing and refuse staff on Monday, the first full day of the UN climate change summit.
Glasgow City Council previously urged the workers to think again about causing disruption during a "busy and difficult time" for the city.
About 120 world leaders and 25,000 delegates would have been presented with a city where 1,500 council staff in refuse, cleansing, school janitorial and catering roles were on strike.
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The GMB, along with the Unison and Unite unions, called for a £2,000 pay rise and previously rejected an £850-a-year increase for staff earning up to £25,000 from local authority umbrella body Cosla.
Bin strikes during COP26 were threatened after Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken was criticised for saying the city needed a "spruce up" before the conference.
Drew Duffy, of GMB Scotland, said the union would hold a two-week consultation from Monday 1 November, and had agreed to suspend strike action during this time.
"While we are pleased that more money for key workers has been found at the 11th hour, the fact it's taken to the brink of the COP to get this offer speaks volumes to our members," he said.
The GMB previously denied workers were using the global climate conference as a bargaining chip but said staff had been "put in a corner" by Cosla despite their efforts during the pandemic.
Mr Duffy told BBC Scotland's Drivetime: "We have been trying to get a negotiated settlement on this for 10 months now and got nowhere and it has taken COP26, it's taken the international world and it's taken the refuse workers of Glasgow through their social media campaign, the pressure they've put on to actually force politicians to finally recognise the work they do.
"Our working-class members have decided to use an international event to highlight the work they do because they are fed up of being disrespected and undervalued by the government."
He added: "It worked."
'Bigger than COP26'
Unison, which represents school cleaners, school caterers, school janitors, waste, recycling and fleet maintenance service workers, has suspended five days of strike action across Scotland while members are consulted.
Johanna Baxter, from Unison Scotland, said: "This improved pay offer rightly puts more money into the pockets of those on the lowest pay - it is just disappointing that Unison members had to threaten to go on strike for their employer to recognise their worth."
She said told BBC Scotland the issue was "bigger than COP26".
"This is a national dispute and we, between the three trade unions, secured legal mandate for industrial action in half of local authority areas," she said.
She said that "demonstrated how fed-up members were with the Scottish government and Cosla treating them like the poor relations of the public sector" and added that the "endemic low pay" meant 55% of local government workers earned less than £25,000 per year.
Chris Mitchell said the GMB knew the £2,000 pay increase was "not going to be achievable"
Chris Mitchell, GMB convenor for refuse and cleansing, said the union had asked for a £2,000 flat rate "across the board for everybody", but knew it was "not going to be achievable".
He said workers had expected to be offered something in the region of £1,200 to £1,300.
"We are open to all negotiations because at the end of the day it's our members who will decide to accept or reject," he added.
A spokesman for Cosla said the offer had been agreed by council leaders, who "acknowledged the dedication and work done by our workforce over the last 18 months and that is why they have explored every option to get to a position that allows this improved offer to be put to the trade unions today".
Councillor Gail Macgregor, Cosla's resources spokesperson said: "We are pleased that as a result of this improved offer our trade union colleagues have notified us this afternoon that they will suspend strike action."
Eyes of the world
A Scottish government spokesman said: "We welcome the news that the immediate prospect of strike action has been averted.
"Given that local authorities are the employers we were not party to negotiations but we supported the search for a solution with a one-off offer of additional funding of £30m.
"We recognise and respect that union processes must now proceed but we hope that today's progress heralds a formal agreement."
The strike is not the first to be announced for the COP26 summit, when the eyes of the world will be on the city.
Another strike which threatened to cripple rail services in Scotland was called off on Wednesday after the RMT accepted a pay deal.
The union said the offer would provide workers with a one-year 2.5% pay rise, improved conditions and a £300 COP payment for all ScotRail staff.
A planned strike by Stagecoach bus workers in the west of Scotland was cancelled on Monday, also after a reaching a deal on pay.
The COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow in November is seen as crucial if climate change is to be brought under control. Almost 200 countries are being asked for their plans to cut emissions, and it could lead to major changes to our everyday lives.
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