Do you agree with the Department of Health and Social Care's decision to end the Think Ahead scheme?
- Yes, fast-track courses are costly and do not adequately prepare trainees for the complexities of social work. (50%, 291 Votes)
- No, Think Ahead is vital in training and recruiting mental health practitioners. (50%, 289 Votes)
Total Voters: 580
Loading ...A second union has come out against employers “full and final” pay offer to local government staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The GMB has joined Unite in recommending members reject the 3.2% offer in a consultative vote, and will also seek support to take strike action in protest against employers’ proposal.
The third and biggest local government union, UNISON, will set out its plans shortly.
Employers have warned that the offer will put pressure on council budgets and claimed it is fair to staff. It is just above the rate of inflation (2.6%) in the year to March 2025, according to the government’s preferred consumer prices index (CPI) measure.
While acknowledging this, GMB national officer Kevin Brandstatter said the proposal was inadequate given the years of real-terms pay cuts local government staff had suffered.
3.2% pay offer ‘is not enough’
Like counterparts in Unite, he also criticised the lack of negotiation from employers before they tabled the offer.
“GMB’s committees were unanimous; this offer isn’t enough and it’s shocking this full and final pay offer was made without any negotiation.
“We will now ask members if they are willing to strike to get more.”
The GMB ballot opens on 12 May and will close on 20 June. Should members indicate they are willing to take industrial action, the union would have to hold a formal strike ballot to obtain a mandate for a walkout.
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3.2% is not enough… minimum wage is being increased by 6.7 percent, so why do we have to settle for 3.2% and have our worth be decreased year on year
The National Minimum wage (21 and over) has had an increase of 6.7%, yet we are offered 3.2% and expected to be happy with it and continue to work hard in a difficult sector. Year on year we have lost out on pay in real terms and now this. It is offensive that the government expects the high level of service and work from council workers, but refuses to pay staff what they are worth.
Before long mid level workers will fall back to being paid minimum wage for higher skilled work, where is the fairness in that. It just devalues the work that staff do, and they still want us to perform at the standards we do, but for in real terms, less pay.
The government claim they are making work pay, but I fail to see that. I’m already worse off this year than last year given the cost of bills still increasing, supermarkets still putting prices up month on month, and with an even lower pay rise this year, it’s just awful.
I agree with everything you said there Sam. Our wages are also being devalued as they aren’t increasing at the same rate as private sector salaries, the rate of increase in the private sector is considerably more than 3.2% this year. Furthermore, local authority social workers are paid less than NHS social workers despite the same level of training. We have a raw deal for sure.
When social workers are balloted along with all other council workers our voices are lost in the crowd. When will we be recognised as a profession in our own right, like teachers, doctors and nurses. The sad fact is some of those on the lowest pay scales in councils can’t afford to strike even for a day so are never going to vote for it and nothing is ever going to change as is proven year on year with these ridiculous offers that are always in the end accepted and we get a few hundred pounds as it’s always backdated and taxed heavily, it’s a joke! I still think everyone deserves a vote but the current system changes nothing and isn’t balanced.
That’s the awful thing about it, the lower bands need a better pay rise, but cannot afford to strike to fight to get them, it a catch 22.
Yes I agree with sam what you have said hope all the unions read this and members and not accept this offer because not before long low payed council workers will be on minimum wage so hope everyone votes against this poor offer
Going on strike is pointless. We know the offer won’t be improved as previous years have proven. People will lose money that they won’t make back by an improved offer.
Absolutely
The past few years the initial offer has been agreed months after meaning that those who have to claim universal credit due to already low income lose their payment for the month into which is it backdated.
It’s so wrong.
We all know that nothing will come of strike action, just delayed payment which has a huge detrimental effect on the lower paid.
Social care workers are also expected to work to high standards and heavy workloads and are constantly being devalued . Pay rises are pathetic for the level of work and don’t even reach 13quid for some . NHS get paid more than some private and are constantly going on about pay rises same trainings etc . It’s about time everyone was paid their worth regardless of private ,or government sectors , equal bandings . Id like to see them work for peanuts on long 12 HR shifts 5 days in a row .
It just seems like all of this is pointless. It’s the exact same every year. They will go back and forth until December when the unions will accept what was originally offered. The systems we work in are broken and councils can’t afford to deliver essential services to meet statutory duties, let alone pay staff what the unions suggest. I absolutely agree pay should be better but until that recognition and funding comes from central government, it all seems a lost cause. Given the cost of living issues we all face, I would rather the unions agree earlier in the year, than making us hold out for an increase in pay until the end of the year. Just my opinion, from a social worker who has worked in Local authorities for 15 years plus. I absolutely believe council workers deserve to be paid better and have very challenging jobs that should be recognised, but sadly I do not have any faith in the unions ever achieving this for us.
So when the councils still don’t Increase the offer and we’ve all spent most of the year waiting to be in the exact same position, it’ll all have been worth it. We all agree we don’t get paid enough and it’s not okay, but the state of the council’s and the fact many have had to declare bankruptcy. The money just isn’t there, or better yet, if they increase it and then we end up people being made redundant because costs need to be cut. Just accept it and move on, as someone stated so many lower paid people can’t afford to strike and this payrise is something a lot of people need. Look at the NHS, they increased the pay for the junior Dr’s and are now having to cut, dr and nurses jobs because the cost is too high. This pay offer is bigger than the last few years.
Groundhog Day again. Unions try to play hard ball, won’t post ballot papers to all members and won’t therefore achieve an adequate number in order to strike, and will end up rolling over towards Christmas for the government to tickle their bellies yet again, while train drivers and other public sector workers get comparatively huge percentage annual pay rises
Seen that both GMB and Unison will be balloting their members for whether to accept the pay offer (GMB stating a reject is also confirming action would be supported); not sure if Unison will ask the same question to get a preliminary gauge on strike mandate. Both ballots appear to close provisionally 20th June (unison TBC). So forget anything until at least the end of July. https://www.seemp.co.uk/2025/05/09/pay-update-4/
If the unions aren’t involved before the final offer and members don’t want to strke, why pay subs into a union?
Honestly this is the same for any union people are a member of. If you’re stupid enough to vote to strike and delay this again for everyone just why? The last five years it’s always been the same, unions arguing, wasting time then agreeing anyway. When are they going to realise? This isn’t private sector, so there will be negotiation. Save us all the time and accept the damn offer, this dawdling is just depriving us of the money, which we are then worse off for too as the lump sum of back pay is taxed harder than it would be in accepting the offer immediately 😂
Anyone on SCP 30 and above are no worse off than the offer last year (well SCP is about £30 short); anyone below SCP 30 will be worse off – but i suspect the percentage of union members that earn below SCP 30 will be less than members that are SCP 30 and above (just a guess based on disposable income assumptions). If there were high volume members of lower pay grades, I doubt the NJC employers would have tabled something that would inevitably be rejected as being worse than last year. I suspect there are more people better off this year that are members. Although it’s not the value we all deserve; it’s a game of chess and the employers side often hold better pieces than the unions.
Reeves keeps on saying wages are rising higher than inflation…..wrong …..3.2 percent is less than 3.5 percent and what happened to pay restoration? Does that only apply to MP’s?
Reject this insult of an offer!
Why do they not just offer the same as the NHS Scotland 4.25% this year and 3.75% next year over all its 8% for a 2 year deal. NOW WE COULD VOTE ON THAT.
Any less than that then we are getting treated as 2nd hand citizens.
At least treat the council staff with the same dignity as our NHS.