Council workers in UK to strike in pay row
Thousands of workers at the biggest local authority in the UK will stage a 24-hour strike tomorrow in a row over employment contracts, which will close schools, museums and libraries and hit other council services.
The action is in protest at a new pay and grading structure at Birmingham City Council, which unions claim will lead to some staff having their earnings cut in half.
Unison West Midlands regional secretary Valerie Broom said: “Our members deserve better treatment and the people of Birmingham deserve better quality services.”
Unions said about 20,000 of the council’s 22,000-strong workforce had voted to take joint industrial action in protest at having the new contracts imposed on them without a collective agreement.
Officials warned that refuse collections, grave-digging, meat testing and school meals will be among the services hit by the walkout.
The council said in a statement: “In light of the industrial action planned by the trade unions in Birmingham, regrettably the city council has had to take the decision to suspend a number of non-critical services.”
The council, the biggest unitary authority in the UK, said it would make every effort to keep as many services and buildings open as possible.
The pay and grading review aimed to even out decades of unfair, over-inflated and inconsistent pay, said the authority.
Members of Unison, Unite, the GMB and the construction workers union Ucatt will take part in the strike.
