Councils aim for three-year deal

Local government employers in England and Wales have announced
plans to seek a three-year pay deal with trade unions.

The employers want to secure an agreement that does not put
pressure on council tax levels. They hope to include new skills
pathways for front-line staff and develop local training and
workforce plans.

They are proposing a review of benefits packages and conditions of
service but have decided not to negotiate a deal loaded towards
those at the lower end of the pay scale.

If agreed with the unions this year, the pay deal would last until
2007.

But a spokesperson for local government union Unison said the trade
unions were still consulting their branches on the framework for
the pay claim.

Meanwhile, Unison Scotland confirmed that it would be asking for a
“significant pay rise” for council workers in Scotland when its
four-year deal expires this year.

Unison’s Scottish organiser for local government, Joe Di Paola,
said the claim, which is due to be agreed between the unions soon,
was likely to be for a figure above the rate of inflation that
dealt with recruitment problems and addressed the gender gap.