Thousands of council workers including Oldham to ballot for strike action over pay

Thousands of Unite members working with local authorities including Oldham are balloting for strike action after rejecting this year’s pay offer.

They have turned down a pay offer of 3.3 per cent from the national employers, who set council workers' pay, as they believe this fails to address years of below inflation pay offers and pay freezes.  

The latest offer represents real terms pay cut and was made without any negotiations with the union. 

Workers being balloted work in various council roles including waste and bin collections, street cleaners, street lighting, teaching assistants and home care staff. 

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Council workers are struggling to keep their heads above water after over a decade of pathetic pay deals.  

“Employers are again trying to cut the real terms pay of workers instead of investing in our members, who do vital jobs in our communities. 

“Unite will not stand by and allow our members to have another paltry pay deal inflicted on them. They have our full backing in their fight for fair pay.” 

The councils being balloted are: Great Yarmouth, North East Lincolnshire, South Tyneside, Blackburn with Darwen Borough, Bolton, Cumberland, Knowsley, Liverpool City Council, Liverpool City Region, Oldham, Sefton, Warrington, Westmorland and Furness, Wirral, Bristol, Cardiff, Durham, Haringey, Leeds, Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth and Southampton. 

Ballots are of a targeted nature, and more local authorities could join the dispute at a later date. The ballot opens on Thursday, July 16 and closes on Monday, August 17. 

Unite national officer for local authorities Clare Keogh said: “After years of real term pay cuts imposed without negotiations, council workers have had enough and see no option but to take action to make their voices heard. 

“Strike action will have a huge impact on the council services communities depend on, but this is entirely the fault of national employers refusing to negotiate.”