Talks between Glasgow City Council and unions to continue after fire and rehire plans paused

Talks between Glasgow City Council, unions, and ACAS are set to continue after plans to fire and rehire thousands of staff were put on hold.

The council and unions, including Unison, are planning to get back around the table after negotiations over a new pay and grading structure broke down on Thursday.

It comes from the local authority’s plans to implement a new pay and grading system after the previous one was found to discriminate mostly against female workers.

The proposals meant pay for most staff would stay the same or rise. However, around 11% would see their wages cut, with some by more than £10,000.

Glasgow City Council announced a pause to the plan, which would have affected 23,000 staff, on Friday, following substantial backlash and a request from deputy first minister Jenny Gilruth.

Talks are likely to resume on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Unison says it has welcomed the money identified during previous negotiations, but further movement is necessary for a settlement capable of delivering equal pay without leaving other workers facing substantial income losses.

Speaking following the talks breaking down, Colin Edgar, the council’s director of communication and governance, said the situation was “hellish”.

He added: “Until very recently, we thought we had a deal with our trade unions. Two of them, Unite and GMB, were at the table with us. They wanted to do a deal and unfortunately at the last minute Unison, knowing what the implications of it would be, walked away. And that’s why we’re here today.”

Unison argued that it had not walked away and it will “ballot its members on an offer once discussions have concluded”.

Fire and rehire will be made illegal as of January as a result of employment law changes brought in by the UK Government.

An emergency motion on the issue will be debated at the Labour conference in Liverpool on Tuesday, which Scottish Labour leader Michael Marra has urged his members to back.

He said: “I want the Labour conference to send the strongest possible message to the SNP in Glasgow and across Scotland that the way that they are treating workers with threats of fire and re-hire is absolutely appalling.

“Workers cannot be treated this way, trying to push through this form of action just weeks before the Labour Government makes it illegal is a gross betrayal of the people.”

He added that it was a “real signal of the incompetence of the SNP leadership” in Glasgow.

“There has been a pause put in place, but I think a strong message from this Labour conference can only help that process.”

Deputy first minister Jenny Gilruth said: “I am pleased that Glasgow City Council has agreed to pause the process of dismissing staff so that all partners can get back around the table for intensive negotiations to focus on bringing a resolution to this dispute.

“Given the significance of this situation and the impact on staff, I wanted to bring all parties together to make clear that I expect negotiations between the council and unions to continue so that a collective agreement can be reached and bring an end to discriminatory pay practices.

“My expectation is that all parties act in line with the principles of fair work and continue to exhaust all avenues for collective agreement. The Scottish Government opposes the inappropriate use of ‘fire and rehire’ and our position is that such a practice does not align with the principles and expected practice of fair work.”