Stirling Council staff strike over pay

The council has proposed a 0.5% pay cut and an extra hour of work each week

Staff at Stirling Council are staging a one-day strike in a row over pay and conditions.

The council has proposed a 0.5% pay cut across all pay grades and an additional hour of work per week.

Unison described it as a 1.5% pay cut after council staff across Scotland narrowly accepted a below-inflation 1% pay rise.

The council's chief executive Bob Jack said the union's decision to hold a strike was "regrettable".

However, Unison Stirling branch secretary James Douglas claimed the proposals were "by far the worst faced by any council in Scotland".

The union claimed the extra 7.5 days of work a year meant it actually amounted to a 4.5% pay cut for most staff.

The council said it needed to find savings of £24m in order to balance its budgets.

It said this followed a "substantial cut" in funding in real terms from the Scottish government, along with a council tax freeze.

The council added that despite the net reduction of 0.5% in pay, employees on the two lowest grades would see an increase in pay following the implementation of the Living Wage at £7.50 an hour.

It said the additional hour was in line with a standard working week - the same as half of Scotland's 32 councils.

However, Unison expressed disappointment at the council's plans to proceed with a pay cut, despite the national pay award from Cosla for a 1% pay rise.

Members of the Unite union are also taking industrial action.