UNISON launch strike ballot of school staff in Scotland

UNISON, the largest union in local government, has today (Tuesday) launched an industrial action ballot of 30,000 school staff in every local authority in Scotland.

The ballot is over a pay dispute for all council workers. The vote will close on Friday 25 August and if staff vote to strike there could be mass school closures across Scotland in September.

Earlier this year, UNISON consulted its entire local government membership (84,000) on COSLA’s pay offer. This was a 5% increase from April 2023, plus an additional increase that varied depending on an individual’s salary payable from January 2024. The union’s members voted overwhelmingly to reject (87%) this.

Nine in ten (90%) of those who rejected the offer also voted in favour of taking some form of strike action to try to secure an improved wage increase.

Waste and recycling workers in Stirling Perth and Kinross have already voted to take industrial action. They will be going out for four days from 10-13 August. School staff are being asked to vote in the dispute from today (Tuesday). The union will decide on whether to ballot additional groups of workers in the coming months.

UNISON Scotland head of local government, Johanna Baxter said: “COSLA’s offer falls short of UNISON’s pay claim, it is also less than the offer made to the lowest paid local government staff south of the border. And it would be a real-terms pay cut during the cost of living crisis.

“Despite efforts to move negotiations along, we’re now at an impasse. COSLA has refused to improve its pay offer, which UNISON members overwhelmingly rejected. It also says it doesn’t have the cash to offer more but is also refusing to ask the Scottish government for additional funding.

“Council and school staff are fed up.  All school staff should look out for their ballots, which will arrive in purple envelopes, vote and post back as soon as possible.”

Notes for editors:

UNISON is the largest union in local government.

UNISON Scotland campaign webpage, with further information: https://unison-scotland.org/local-government-pay-23-24/

UNISON press release on consultative ballot rejecting April pay offer: https://unison-scotland.org/local-government-workers-in-largest-union-vote-to-reject-pay-offer-and-take-action/

Results of UNISON Scotland’s local government digital consultative pay ballot in April:

  • Do you want to accept or reject this pay offer? Reject pay offer 87.11%
  • Are you willing to take industrial action up to and including strike action in pursuit of an improved offer? Of those who reject pay offer, 90.99%

UNISON contact details

  • Johanna Baxter M: 07817 120894
  • Danny Phillips M: 07944 664110