Nicola Sturgeon has told councils the Scottish Government does not have a “bottomless pit of money” to resolve a strike by local government workers that has seen rubbish pile up in the streets of Edinburgh and is now set to close schools.
The First Minister insists she wants to “see the fairest possible pay deal delivered to public sector workers in very difficult times” and also wants “to see industrial action avoided”.
But she said the “Scottish Government has a finite budget” and has already given councils £140 million “to help fund a fair pay deal”.
There isn't a bottomless pit here— First Minister Nicola Sturgeon
She said: “There isn’t a bottomless pit of money here, but we will continue to work with trade unions and with local authorities to try to find a way forward.”
Ms Sturgeon spoke after council chiefs made a fresh pay offer after talks with trade unions.
Cosla, the organisation representing Scotland’s 32 local authorities, confirmed a new “firm offer” had been tabled after “productive” talks.
It comes after Unison and the GMB announced staff at schools and nurseries in several local authority areas will walk out for three days from September 6.
Details on the pay offer are not yet known, though Cosla has urged trade unions to consult with their members.
It is our hope that they will now take this offer away and consult their membership on it— Cosla spokesman
School and early years staff from nine local authority areas confirmed they will take strike action, walking out for three days from September 6
That will impact on schools and early years learning in Aberdeenshire, Clackmannanshire, East Renfrewshire, Glasgow City, Inverclyde, Orkney, North Lanarkshire, Striking and South Lanarkshire.
Meanwhile, bins have been overflowing and streets are covered with rubbish in Edinburgh after waste workers walked out last Thursday to protest against a “derisory” and “pathetic” pay offer.
In response to the strikes being announced, a Cosla spokesman said: “We met with our trade union colleagues earlier today (Tuesday).
“It was both constructive and a productive meeting and a new firm offer has now been put to them.
“It is our hope that they will now take this offer away and consult their membership on it.”
With waste workers in Edinburgh already on strike, more staff from across Scotland are due to take similar action later this month, with 13,000 Unison members expected to strike.
Cosla had previously increased the pay offer from 3.5% to 5%, but union leaders said they could not present the offer to members as it was “vague” on how the lowest earners would be impacted.
Until we can explain to Unison members how a pay offer might impact on them, council workers have been left with no choice but to strike— Johanna Baxter, Unison
The minimum hourly rate would have been raised to £10.50 under the previous proposals.
Confirming school staff will strike in September, Johanna Baxter, head of local government at Unison Scotland, said: “Until we can explain to Unison members how a pay offer might impact on them, council workers have been left with no choice but to strike.
“Unison has been demanding pay talks for months and Cosla and the Scottish Government are still dragging their heels. Inflation is predicted to rise to more than 13%, and our members are struggling as fuel, food and household bills go through the roof.
“Until we have a decent pay offer that we can put to Unison members, our strike action will continue and thousands of school and early years workers will be talking action across nine councils in Scotland.”
Keir Greenaway, GMB Scotland senior organiser for public services, said: “It is ridiculous that we are six months down the line since staff rejected the initial 2% and unions are still trying to get an offer on the table that could help mitigate working poverty for tens of thousands of key workers in local government.”
Mr Greenaway also said union members wanted clarity on whether the proposal comes with the assurance of a flat rate award, a key demand on the pay claim.
Edinburgh’s bin strikes, which are taking place during the capital’s busy festival period, have caused a political row over who is responsible.
Culture minister and Edinburgh MSP Angus Robertson said the Labour-led council in the city has “enough money” to offer the “reasonable” pay rise.
However, Mark Griffin, Scottish Labour local government spokesman, said it was a “Scotland-wide dispute caused by SNP incompetence”.
