Care staff working at Enable Scotland are to go on strike in a dispute over pay, their union UNISON has announced today (Wednesday).
The action, which begins later this month, is the first national care strike in over a decade. It comes after years of broken promises and delays by the Scottish government to reform and fund social care properly, says the union.
UNISON says the decision to strike was not taken lightly, but that the carers have been left with no other option after being consistently let down by ministers.
The strike will roll out across five days in different regions of the country, beginning on 29 May in East Renfrewshire, and continuing in Aberdeenshire, Moray, Ayrshire, Edinburgh and Glasgow. It will culminate with a march and rally at the Scottish Parliament on Thursday 12 June.
UNISON Scotland regional organiser Jennifer McCarey said: “Strike action is always a last resort. But unions representing care workers have been working with the Scottish government for several years on a plan for social care. But not a single promise made by ministers has been kept. In fact, care workers’ pay has gotten worse.
“The care sector is in crisis, and that responsibility lies squarely with the Scottish government. Until care workers are properly valued and paid fairly, the sector will never have the care workers it needs.
“Ministers must fund charitable care properly and act to resolve this issue.”
Anna Baird, a UNISON member and a personal assistant with Enable Scotland for 8 years, said: “I love my job and the people I support, that’s why this decision was so hard. But we’re at breaking point.
“We’ve been made promises for years, but nothing changes. Our pay doesn’t reflect the responsibility we carry and many of us are struggling to make ends meet. We’re just asking to be valued for the vital work we do.”
Notes to editors:
-UNISON represents around 600 workers at Enable Scotland.
– The strike dates announced as follows:
- 29 May – East Renfrewshire. Picket line will be at Melisa House, Brand St, G51 1DR
- 3 June – Aberdeenshire / Moray. Pickets at Milltown Community, The Croft House, AB30 1PF
- 6 June – Ayrshire. Pickets at Busby Business Centre, Tannock Street, Kilmarnock, KA1 4DN
- 10 June – North Lanarkshire/Central services staff. Pickets will be at Inspire House, 3 Renshaw Place, Eurocentral, Motherwell ML1 4UF
- 12 June – Edinburgh and Glasgow. There will be a march and rally at the Scottish Parliament on this day.
-To protect those most at risk, UNISON has agreed ‘life and limb’ cover with the employer for during the strike.
-UNISON is Scotland’s largest union, with more than 150,000 members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.