Thousands of public sector workers held a massive demonstarion in Glasgow protesting against service cuts ahead of the general election.
Unison, the public services union, said that public service cuts will hit Scots from "cradle to the grave" before the march and rally in Glasgow's west end on Saturday.
Councils across Scotland have announced major cuts to services and public sector jobs as a result of budget restraints due to the bail out of the banks following the credit crunch.
East Ayrshire Council is cutting the number of community wardens and introducing charges for music tuition in schools; Edinburgh City Council is closing four schools and cutting funding for community groups; West Lothian Council has announced 1,000 job losses and a raft of service cuts; Dumfries and Galloway Council is reducing the number of teachers and intends to charge disabled drivers for blue badges; East Lothian Council is closing libraries, increasing burial charges and raising the price of school meals; Fife Council is increasing charges for Community Alarms from £1 to £1.50 per week and making playground supervisors redundant.
The union's research has uncovered cuts of £300 million across local government, with planned job losses of more than 3,000.
Unjust
Scottish Labour's local government spokesman Michael McMahon gave his backing to Unison's campaign and blamed the SNP's council tax freeze for the cuts.
He said: "I am proud to support Unison's campaign against local service cuts. The SNP is responsible for a real terms cut in local government budgets and councils are being forced to make cuts in core areas such as schools and libraries.
"Unison is absolutely right to stand up for its members against the biggest assault on local services since Thatcher. It is unfair and unjust that school children and the elderly are being asked to pay for Alex Salmond's underfunded council tax freeze.
"Let's not forget that this is happening at a time when the Scottish Government has nearly £1 billion more to spend than last year and greater resources than any previous administration."
The SNP's John Mason hit back saying Gordon Brown had a central role in the cuts.
Mr Mason added: "Today's demonstration underlines the growing protest against that cuts agenda. If Labour now oppose the council tax freeze they now have to say how much extra tax they want ordinary Scots to pay? Yet they have not answered this question yet."
Attacks
Unison's Scottish convenor, Mike Kirby, believes cuts threaten all stages of life, from the hours worked by classroom assistants to mobile libraries and meals on wheels.
He added: "Unison members, who deliver services across Scotland, are reporting that cuts are already threatening services for Scots from the cradle to the grave.
"And this is just the start of a sustained period of attacks on the public sector.
"As politicians vie with one another to out-trump each other's cuts to pay for the bail out of the banks, we urge our members and community campaigns to join Unison's Public Works campaign and tell politicians at all levels - in Westminster, in Holyrood and locally, that you will not accept cuts in our vital public services to bail out the fat cats."
Unison's UK president, Gerry Gallagher, STUC general secretary, Grahame Smith, and PCS Scottish president, Janice Godrich were all in attendance.
Crash
Mr Gallagher said: "In Glasgow and in London today our key message is that public services should not suffer because of the bank bailout.
"Our members didn't cause the crash, and neither did the people we serve every day in communities across Scotland.
"Cuts will damage recovery from recession. Cuts will hit public services we all depend on. Cuts will threaten the wellbeing of our members and their families. You all have your own story to tell.
"And tell them you should. Because it is the combined voice of public service workers and service users that need to be heard in corridors of power."
BACKGROUND
Union call to cut high earner bonuses
