COUNCIL CALLS FOR FRESH TALKS IN SINGLE STATUS ROW

14-01-2008

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Unions representing angry Birmingham Council workers have been invited to fresh negotiations over the controversial Single Status Pay and Grading Review.  The news comes after an estimated 1,000 protestors turned up to a rally in Victoria Square at the weekend.

The Council argues that most workers will be better off, or at least won’t lose money under the new structure, which is being imposed following government legislation end wage discrimination.

What that claim disguises is that the new grades will introduce an element of performance related pay, making it more difficult to reach the top of a scale.

It’s this issue – as well as the significant pay reductions faced by thousands of staff – which is causing anger.

We've learned that last Thursday Alan Rudge, the Cabinet Member responsible for implementing Single Status, summoned union officials to the Council House in an attempt to head off a strike. 

With a ballot on industrial action due to be completed on January 25, that is currently a real possibility.

Steve Foster from the Unite/T&G union said, “The Council wants fresh negotiations, but we’re saying we don’t want any pre-conditions.

“I think they didn’t expect so much discontent, and the Press especially have worried them.  I think they thought that you can usually rely on the Press in Birmingham to bash the unions, but that hasn’t happened this time.

“They’ve admitted they’ve made mistakes but the question is whether they are willing to put them right.  If they aren’t, we are willing to look at legal issues.

“The law says the Council has to have proper negotiations before introducing new contracts, but they set a timetable from the start, and when the deadline came they imposed the conditions anyway.”

Caroline Johnston from Unison, “I think we’ve got them worried.  We’re more than happy to have new talks, but there’s no point unless they are going to be serious.

“They’ve said they’ll tinker around the edges, but they aren’t prepared to withdraw the seven grade pay model.”

Saturday’s rally gave some indication of the depth of feeling among workers, and had support from Single Status campaigners in Wolverhampton and further afield.

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