Local authority workers are to stage protests in London and Cardiff today (9 June) as strike ballots open next week.
Unite the union said its workers would “deliver a clear message to the Local Government Association in England and Wales that they will not accept a real terms pay cut”.
The union said a decade of real terms pay cuts has meant council pay “has become so low workers can’t pay their bills”.
Members of Unite, employed by local authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, previously rejected the local government employers’ pay offer for 2023/24.
The pay offer of £1,925 equates to 3.88% and 9.42% depending on the worker’s individual grade, it said.
15th Annual LATIF & FDs’ Summit – 19 September 2023
250+ Delegates from Local Government & Investment
Sharon Graham, Unite’s general secretary, said: “Local authority workers are determined to fight another year of real terms pay cuts. They have already endured over a decade of pay freezes and below inflation pay increases. The value of their pay has plummeted by over a quarter in real terms.
“This is totally unacceptable, the workers are staging a fight back and they have Unite’s complete support.”
Clare Keogh, Unite’s national officer, commented: “Today’s protest is a wakeup call. Council leaders need to return to the negotiating table and propose a vastly improved pay offer.
“Our members are assets to their communities where they live and work. But a decade of real terms pay cuts means council pay has become so low workers can’t pay their bills.”
Members of unions GMB and Unite in England, Wales and Northern Ireland previously voted to reject the pay offer, moving to industrial action ballots.
In Scotland, Unite has warned of a summer of strikes as local government pay talks have collapsed.
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