Glasgow City Council Reaches Pay Deal With Unison Union

Glasgow City Council reached a pay and grading agreement with the trade union Unison, ending a dispute that threatened 23,000 non-teaching staff with a fire-and-rehire exercise. The council had previously notified these employees they were at risk of dismissal and reappointment on less favorable terms after negotiations collapsed over a new system designed to resolve historical equal pay issues.

Under the new terms, the council will protect the pay of the 11 percent of staff who would have faced wage cuts for a period of three years. While the GMB and Unite unions had already accepted the terms, Unison will ballot its members over the next four weeks to finalize the deal.

Council leader Ricky Bell stated the agreement aims to end pay discrimination within the organization and credited the Government of Scotland for providing the support necessary to unlock the deal. Unison Glasgow city branch secretary Chris Sermanni noted that the union's position secured significant movement during the negotiations.