MORE council areas in Scotland are set to be impacted by disruption in schools following the announcement of further walkouts by support staff.
Unison announced that members in South Lanarkshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Edinburgh and Fife will strike on Wednesday November 8.
The union had already made clear members' intentions to strike in Glasgow City, Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire and Inverclyde on Wednesday November 1.
It comes after Unison members voted overwhelmingly to reject Cosla’s latest pay offer, which would have seen the wages of the lowest-paid workers rise by around £2000 a year.
The union said it will be carrying out a rolling programme of action with further strike dates and other councils to be announced in due course.
Unison Scotland’s head of local government Johanna Baxter said: “Despite our repeated calls for Cosla and the Scottish government to get back round the table for meaningful discussions we have had no invitations to even exploratory talks.
“The union is committed to reaching a resolution to this dispute as soon as possible.
“And there is still time for Cosla and the Scottish Government to get back round the negotiating table to explore every avenue to reaching a negotiated settlement and avoid further disruption for parents and students.
“The strength of feeling amongst Unison’s 91,000 local government members, who voted overwhelmingly to reject Cosla’s latest pay offer, is clear.
"They are determined to continue to fight to get an improved pay offer.”
In Glasgow all nurseries and primary schools, and additional support learning schools, will close on November 1, while secondary schools in Glasgow will only be open for S4–S6, except for Glasgow Gaelic Secondary School which will be closed to all pupils.
In East Renfrewshire all primary schools, nursery classes within schools and Isobel Mair School will be closed while secondary schools will be closed to all S1-S3 pupils, though open to S4-S6 pupils. The position will be similar in Renfrewshire, while Inverclyde Council has yet to confirm its plans.
Cosla's offer was accepted by the GMB and Unite unions, however the chair of Unison Scotland’s local government committee, Mark Ferguson, said it amounted to a “real terms pay cut”.
He said: “The current offer amounts to a real-terms pay cut and adds further stress to a dedicated workforce already suffering from the cost-of-living crisis.
“Cosla and the Scottish Government need to give school staff a decent wage rise, fund any increase properly and commit to implementing a minimum underpinning rate of pay of £15 per hour for all local government workers.”
Cosla and the Scottish Government have been asked for comment.
