July 17, 2008

Schools closed by strike action

Throughout England, Wales and Northern Ireland thousands of council workers have been on strike causing chaos to many of the council services including schools.

Members of the Unison and Unite unions are expecting around six hundred thousand workers to part in a series of planned strikes which is over pay and will affect non teaching staff at the schools.

The local authorities have offered their staff a pay rise of 2.45%, but the unions are saying that this is unacceptable due to the increases in the cost of the living. With inflation, fuel and other costs on the rise, the unions are asking for a 6% pay rise or fifty pence per hour across the board.

However the councils say that they have no more money to offer and if they were to give the staff the pay rise that they are requesting then they would have to cut services in order to fund it.

Source [Agent Cities]