Glasgow Labour declares war on its own workers
By Matt Dobson
Heroic council workers are fighting cuts, low pay, privatisation and overwork in Glasgow.
Glasgow Labour council is trying to drive through the privatisation of its ICT services.
There is anger and a strong will to fight. In Glasgow, ICT workers have voted by 96% to back strike action against the attacks on terms and conditions privatisation represents.
School janitors have taken 29 days of strike action so far in 2016. Community Safety workers have been walking out every weekend throughout the autumn. In both cases it’s because of unfair pay by their “arms length” employers.
The socialist-led Glasgow City Unison branch are at the heart of these struggles. It shows what is possible when trade union members have a leadership they can trust to fight with them and against all cuts and privatisation.
Instead of Labour and the SNP implementing Tory austerity, we need anti-cuts councillors that build a fight back.
£500 million was cut from councils in Scotland this year. Since 2008, 40,000 jobs have been lost from councils across Scotland. Both Labour and SNP councils are attacking workers conditions.
Workers and users of council services need councillors that support and act on the policy of the local authority unions in Glasgow and Dundee which is for no-cuts budgets.
Councils should use all financial mechanisms to stop implementing cuts and build a mass campaign to demand a return of the billions stolen in austerity by Holyrood and Westminster.
The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) will be standing anti-austerity fighters in the 2017 council elections on this manifesto, alongside a wide range of socialist and anti-privatisation policies.
McAveety threatens striking workers
The Glasgow Labour council leader has made a shocking anti-trade union attack on striking Community Safety Glasgow (CSG) workers and Glasgow City Unison.
Frank McAveety was quoted in the press (Evening Times 3/11/16) before the latest round of strikes, saying: “At a time when the poorest in Glasgow are having benefits slashed by hundreds of pounds, wage rises in the thousands are not good enough for the Unison leaders.
“The Unison leaders are putting the jobs of their members at risk and the lives of the Glasgow public at risk on a strike on Guy Fawkes weekend.”
Glasgow City Unison responded to the attacks in a press statement and with a protest outside the city chambers the next day.
“Cllr McAveety’s attempt to undermine our members’ just case by making comparisons to those out of work is the worst kind of divide and rule tactics.
“If he is so concerned about those out of work then why is the council cutting jobs? We want fair pay and good jobs for all people in our city.
“Cllr McAveety also fails to mention the fact that the CSG pay review has given the CSG Director an increase of £5,000 – he now gets £107,000! The Director also had personal use of a company car worth £33,000. Is that fairness?”
“Most shift workers in CSG have had poor or no shift payments for years.
“The council can’t just wish that away by giving them something now without a comparison to the rest of the council. The increases in core pay in no way compensate for the lower shift payments compared to all other council workers.”
Unfortunately for Glasgow Labour, Unison members back the fighting strategy of the union. Unison in Glasgow with a fighting socialist leadership has won significant victories against McAveety’s Labour administration by successfully campaigning with the other unions against the attacks on public holidays, winning a strike over pay for CSG CCTV workers earlier in the year and the 17-week strike of the Homeless Caseworkers in 2015.
The Scottish Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) will be standing anti-cuts candidates who back the fightback of the trade unions against McAveety’s Labour in May 2017.
