Angie Waller, Kirklees Unison steward, personal capacity
More than one million local government workers in Unison are about to be balloted on pay after the derisory pay offer from the previous Tory government of £1,290.
This came after the National Joint Council (NJC) of recognised local government unions put in a claim of £3,000 or 10%, whichever was the greater. Unison conducted a digital consultative ballot in June which overwhelmingly rejected the offer.
Local government workers have faced more than ten years of below-inflation pay rises. For many, this has meant they have lost 25% from the value of their pay since 2010. The cost-of-living crisis is pushing our members further into debt. The cost of food, travel, rents and mortgages all overtook the pay increase in the last year. Alongside this, local government pay is still among the lowest in the public sector. Unison demands a minimum of £15 an hour.
Council workers have seen successful strikes across different parts of the public sector, such as the doctors and train drivers, and this will give them confidence to strike for more – and equally they will expect more from the Labour government.
The previous two years saw most NJC unions accept a flat-rate increase of £1,925. This below-inflation increase was rejected by Unison and Unite members in ballots for national industrial action, but they only passed the Tory anti-union 50% turnout threshold in a small number of branches so there was no national fight.
Learn lessons
This year, it is important to learn the lessons from this. Under the pressure of active branches, Unison organised a pay seminar where branches like Lambeth and Knowsley could share their tactics on reaching the 50%.
With this in mind, it is essential that the Unison leadership raises the tempo of this dispute and demands that Starmer’s Labour meets Unison’s local government claim in full.
The ballot starts in September and ends in October. A ‘yes’ vote with over 50% turnout in the majority of branches is what is needed to put the pressure on Labour to deliver the full pay claim.
An improved pay offer would also give confidence to many members that are currently fighting for their jobs and services against council cuts and redundancies – especially in the light of increasing numbers of Section 114 ‘bankruptcy’ notices. We need to prepare for a campaign, coordinated with other public sector unions, that could force the Labour government not only to pay up, but also give the councils the funding they need.
