Staff on strike for more pay (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Staff on strike for more pay

THE CIRENCESTER headquarters of Cotswold District Council were fronted by UNISON pickets on Wednesday as around 50 staff members took part in a national one-day strike.

One of them, Jamie Lewis, the vice-chairman of UNISON's Cotswold branch, stressed beforehand that they had no argument with CDC itself.

"They had the foresight to review staff salaries in January 2001," he said, "bringing them more into line with the locality.

"UNISON members at CDC acknowledge this is not currently a local issue. We have a very good relationship with the council."

However, said Mr Lewis, the branch was supporting its colleagues across the country to raise awareness and send a powerful message to the Government.

"If local authority funding is not given higher priority, recruitment and retention problems will inevitably return to CDC, affecting service provision," he said.

UNISON's national pay claim was for a six per cent increase, or flat rate increases of £1,750, to give a minimum wage of £11,017.

"We feel that local authority employees have become the poor relation of other public sector service providers such as health, education, and policing, who present a higher profile," he went on.

Mr Lewis said UNISON did not feel the issue was simply one of pay.

"Across the country local authorities are facing severe recruitment and retention problems due, primarily, to greater demands and under-funding by central Government," he said.

"This is having a detrimental effect on services and staff who are having to work more unpaid overtime and cope with growing staff shortages.

"There is no doubt that if this situation continues there will be a serious impact on the ability of local authorities to deliver services."

Mr Lewis said the Cotswold branch of UNISON had around 100 members at CDC, approximately one third of the total staff.

"Members will make their own decisions on whether or not they wish to join the strike," he said.

He added that the strike could be repeated, depending on the response to the action.