Debating the Issues

A reader from North Lanarkshire has been in touch to sway that she is none too impressed at the attitude of an MSP whom she contacted to ask for support in relation to North Lanarkshire Council and equal pay.

Now I think it's wise not to name names at this stage because the idea is to win politicians over rather than fall out with them, but then again what are local constituents entitled to expect.

Well I certainly think that people in North Lanarkshire should expect their MPs' active support in taking the matter up with the Council and explaining where they stand on the key issues.

For example, what do MSPs think about the Council being forced to concede that it has got the grading of various jobs wrong after years of insisting that the Council's job evaluation scheme (JES) had been implemented properly and fairly?

What do MSPs think about the fact that the Council has assimilated traditional male jobs onto the post-JES pay structures using their old bonus earnings? 

Because if you ask me this simply preserves the historical pay differences between make and female jobs which the 1999 Single Status (Equal Pay) Agreement was supposed to sweep away for good.

So if I were a claimant in North Lanarkshire I would explain these points to my local councillor, MSP or MP and ask them what they think - and suggest that they make their views clear by writing to the Council on their constituent's behalf.

Can you imagine an MSP telling a local constituent who had been let down by the NHS, that the way in which a local hospital had performed was nothing to do with them, i.e. the MSP?

General expressions of support along the lines of "I support your right to equal pay" are not good enough if you ask me, because the whole point of having a political representative is that they should get actively into issues on behalf of their constituents.

Debating the Issues 3 (18 April 2014)

Here is another set of questions and issues about equal pay in North Lanarkshire Council for people to use in their discussions with local councillors, MSPs and MPs.

I would expect any politician worth his or her salt to stick up for their local constituents and the political allegiance of the Council should not be a factor - because the fight for equal pay ought to transcend party politics.  

So I hope people get stuck in and have their say and remember the whole point about proportional representation is that it allows voters a choice.  

1. How does the council justify such poor offers of settlement to former APT&C workers up to the point when job evaluation was introduced in 2006?
2. Will the Council explain and share the information about the way these offers have been calculated offers to former APT&C workers have been calculated - because they do not seem fair or reasonable which is why they have been rejected by Action 4 Equality Scotland?  
3. What were rates of pay applied to the Council's traditional male jobs (various refuse workers and gardeners) in 2013/14?
4. Why have recent changes been made to the way these jobs are paid - is the Council trying to avoid its obligations in terms of equal pay?  
5. How much money has the Council spent in fighting this case in the Glasgow Employment Tribunal and how does the North Lanarkshire justify the cost involved, given what has happened in South Lanarkshire Council? 

Keep me posted and remember your councillor, MSP or MP is not a highly paid postbox - part of their job is to have opinions on issues and make representations on behalf of local people, not just to pass on the views of North Lanarkshire Council.    

Debating the Issues 2 (15 April 2014)

Here are some additional issues that readers in North Lanarkshire might wish to raise with their local councillors, MSPs and MPs.

The key thing if you ask me is not to get fobbed off by a politician who tells you that he/she will write to the Council on your behalf because what people want to know, presumably, is where their councillor, MSP or MP stands on the issue of equal pay.

What do they actually think about developments in the Employment Tribunal and what the Council has been up to with its job evaluation scheme and new pay arrangements.

So get organised, marshall the facts and your arguments and let the politicians know that you expect them to come off the fence and stand up for the people they claim to represent. 

1. Why have traditional male jobs had their bonus earnings taken into account when these jobs were assimilated onto the new NLC pay structures (after job evaluation)
2. Surely the assimilation process has discriminated against women workers and favoured traditional male jobs by taking these bonus earnings into account?
3. Does the Council now accept that it has acted in contravention of the 1999 Single Status (Equal Pay) Agreement?
4. Does the Council that it has failed to observe the requirements of UK equal pay legislation?

And if people let me know how they get on, I'll share the information on the blog site.

Debating the Issues 1 (14 April 2014)

Lots of readers in North Lanarkshire have got in touch to say that they are contacting their local councillors, MSPs and MPs to discuss equal pay and recent developments at the ongoing Employment Tribunal - where the Council's case, by all accounts, is taking a terrible beating.

Now as regular readers know North Lanarkshire has been forced to concede (at the Employment Tribunal) that many key female dominated jobs have been scored and graded incorrectly, despite denying this to be so for years - going back to 2006 in fact.

So here are some points that readers may wish to raise with local politicians  because there's no doubt that in my mind that the council's workforce and the wider public deserve a proper explanation 

1. How could these 'mistakes' possibly have happened?
2. How does the Council explain being in 'denial' for so many years? 
3. Who is being held to account for the mess the Council has made of equal pay?
4. How and when will these various jobs (such as Home Support Workers) now be regraded properly?
5. How can the workforce have any confidence in senior managers who have been saying for years that the Job Evaluation scores are correct?
6. Is an investigation underway and will disciplinary action being taken against any of the senior managers involved for not doing their jobs properly and failing to protect the interests of the workforce? 

I will draw up some additional questions on other topics as well, but if readers have their own suggestions drop me a note and I'll share these on the blog site. 

More MSPs (12 April 2014)

As promised, here are the contact details for 'list' MSPs whose Central Region constituency covers the North Lanarkshire Council area.

The purpose of a 'list' MSP is to provide local people with a choice about who can represent you or take up issues on your behalf.

So if a local constituency MSP doesn't seem to interested in your problem, then you are entitled to take it to someone else on the regional constituency list who might be more sympathetic to your cause.

I haven't had any recent dealing with any of these MSPs, but I do know that Richard Lyle was previously the SNP Group leader on North Lanarkshire Council.

Siobhan McMahon, Scottish Labour Party

Email: Siobhan.McMahon.msp@scottish.parliament.uk

Mark Griffin, Scottish Labour Party

Email: Mark.Griffin.msp@scottish.parliament.uk

Richard Lyle, Scottish National Party

Email: Richard.Lyle.msp@scottish.parliament.uk

Margaret Mitchell, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

Email: Margaret.Mitchell.msp@scottish.parliament.uk

Margaret McCulloch, Scottish Labour Party

Email: Margaret.McCulloch.msp@scottish.parliament.uk

John Wilson, Scottish National Party

Email: John.Wilson.msp@scottish.parliament.uk

Clare Adamson, Scottish National Party

Email: Clare.Adamson.msp@scottish.parliament.uk

North Lanarkshire MSPs (11 April 2014)

Lots of people have been asking what they can do to help bring about a fair and just settlement of their equal pay claims against North Lanarkshire Council (NLC). 

Well one practical things claimants can do is to contact local councillors, MSPs and even MPs to explain recent developments at the Employment Tribunal and ask local politicians for their support.

So here are contact email addresses for MSPs whose local constituencies cover the North Lanarkshire Council (NLC) area - there is another category of list MSPs whose regional constituency covers a wider and I will publish these details, separately, in the next day or so.

I will say that Alex Neil (now Airdrie and Shotts) certainly played a very positive role over equal pay in South Lanarkshire (as a regional constituency MSP) and I imagine he would be delighted to hear from people in North Lanarkshire as well although, to be fair, every MSP ought to be stand up stand up for their constituents.  

I will also be posting a list of issues that people might wish to raise with their various councillors, MSPs and MPs when these meetings take place, and always remember - many hands make light work.

If people let me know how they get on, I'm happy to share the information on the blog site.  


Jamie Hepburn MSP - Cumbernauld and Kilsyth Constituency

Email - Jamie.Hepburn.msp@scottish.parliament.uk 

John Pentland MSP - Motherwell and Wishaw Constituency

Email - John.Pentland.msp@scottish.parliament.uk 


Michael McMahon MSP - Uddingston and Bellshill Constituency

Email - Michael.McMahon.msp@scottish.parliament.uk 


Elaine Smith MSP - Coatbridge and Chryston

Email - Elaine.Smith.msp@scottish.parliament.uk 


Alex Neil MSP - Airdrie and Shotts

Email - Alex.Neil.msp@scottish.parliament.uk